Running head: ORAL HEALTH AMONGST CHILDREN IN GEORGIA 1

Oral health issues amongst low-income community children in Georgia

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ORAL HEALTH AMONGST CHILDREN IN GEORGIA 2

Oral health issues amongst low-income community children Georgia

Introduction

Healthy mouths are proper not just on the issue of smiling since oral health has an impact

on the entire body, and this makes dental care more than just about cosmetics. Oral diseases are a

primary public concern globally, and it has been known to affect mostly children and the elderly.

Poor oral health affects much low income earning families and other vulnerable populations.

There has been a significant disparity associated with untreated tooth decay and absenteeism

amongst school-going children. According to the center for disease control (CDC), “one in three

children ages 2 through 5 who had family incomes below $10,000, experienced at least one

decayed tooth that had not been treated” (Moore et al., 2019). Oral health is essential since, when

untreated, it leads to problems in speaking and eating. Despite interventions from healthcare

stakeholders on the improvement of the overall health status, many problems remain and

especially disadvantaged groups such as the low income earning families in his case. This paper

analyzes oral health issues related to children aged between two and five years from low-income

families in Georgia and interventions that can be used in dealing with the problems.

Background

Recent years have seen Georgia, the USA registers a significant growth in population and

has even gone above the national average population. As of 2010, Georgia’s population was at

about 9,687,653 people, with a majority being adults older than eighteen years (Kabore et al.,

2014). The majority of people in Georgia live in metropolitan areas such as Brunswick,

Savannah, Atlanta, and Columbus. Based on the 2010 population and which today has grown,

the per capita household incomes are lower compared to the averages of the whole nation.

About 18% of Georgians based on the 2010 population lived below the poverty levels with low
ORAL HEALTH AMONGST CHILDREN IN GEORGIA 3

income (Kabore et al., 2014). This is the population that suffers mostly from oral diseases that

range from minimal conditions such as acute gingivitis and dental decay to fatal ones such as

oral autoimmune lesions and oral cancer. Gum diseases and dental caries are the most common

and prevalent oral problems and make up for a large part of the oral disease burden in Georgia.

Oral health in Georgia is monitored by analyzing the different diseases and is consistent with the

National Oral Health Surveillance System (NOHSS), and this allows for comparison with the

nation and other states and a review of the HP2020 targets.

Epidemiological Analysis of the Problem

The prevalence of oral diseases, especially dental caries in children, is measured through

assessing the caries experience, urgent care, and untreated decay. The distribution of dental

caries amongst children aged between two and five is not uniform in Georgia, just like within the

nation. The risk of oral diseases amongst children from low income earning families leads to

expensive and unnecessary visits to the emergency room while those that have started school

skip school regularly, thus affecting their education foundations. More than 40% of young

children in Georgia have dental caries experience annually (Cao et al., 2017), and this is higher

than the HP2020 objectives. Moreover, about 30% of the children within the state also have

untreated dental decay annually (Cao et al., 2017), and this is also higher than the HP2020.

Based on the racial categorization, Hispanic children make up the more significant part of

children that experience dental caries and those with untreated dental decay within the state.

Moreover, young children from the rural areas of Georgia are more likely to have untreated

dental decay compared to those from metropolitan areas. Urgent care is needed for these children

from the low income earning families and the minorities within the community since they are the

at-risk population on the issue of oral diseases.

ORAL HEALTH AMONGST CHILDREN IN GEORGIA 4

Application of HP2020

Finding ways to deal with and improve oral health outcomes amongst the children from

low income earning families is essential and needs collaborative effort from all stakeholders

within the community. The overall HP2020 goal related to oral health is to control and prevent

oral and craniofacial conditions, diseases, injuries, and to ensure that there is improved access to

dental care and its preventive services. More specifically, HP2020 is aimed at increasing the

application of preventive dental care amongst children that come from low-income families.

Preventive care is defined through evidence-based services and professional dental cleaning that

has insufficient evidence related to the effectiveness of preventing caries (Wei et al. 2018).

According to HP2020, the oral and craniofacial conditions and diseases include gum

periodontal /gum diseases, dental caries, oral and facial pain, cleft lip and palate, xerostomia/ dry

mouth, and pharyngeal and oral cancers. The overall improvement of oral health within the past

fifty years in America is defined as a success story as the HP2020 explains oral health as being

essential in the overall body health. It explains the importance of understanding oral health and

the emerging issues in oral health, mainly the lack of access to dental care. The objectives of

HP2020 are 17 numbered OH-1 to OH-17. Based on this topic where the analysis was based on

children, OH-1.1 is to “reduce the proportion of children that are aged 3 to 5 years with dental

caries experience in their primary teeth” (HP.gov, n.d.). OH-2.1 is to “reduce the proportion of

children aged 3 to 5 years with untreated dental decay in their primary teeth” (HP.gov). OH-12.1

“Increase the proportion of children aged 3 to 5 years who have received dental sealants on one

or more of their primary molar teeth” (HP.gov, n.d.). Other objectives related to the topic are to

increase the percentage of children using oral healthcare systems and to increase the proportion

of low-income children that receive any kind of preventive dental care services.
ORAL HEALTH AMONGST CHILDREN IN GEORGIA 5

Dental screening is vital in achieving the overall improvement of oral health in Georgia. Dental

screening, according to Arora et al. (2017), entails the visual inspection of the oral cavity of

children making the parents aware of the current oral status and treatment needs for their child.

Free dental screening within the low income earning communities would be an essential way of

improving the overall oral health of children from these communities.

Population-Level Planning Interventions

Public dental insurance should be the starting point for children in Georgia, and

according to Cao et al. (2017), approximately 60% of the 2.6 million children living in Georgia

are eligible for public dental insurance. HP2020 in oral health seeks to ensure that the nation is

healthy through reducing proportions of children with dental caries experience and untreated

dental decay while increasing the proportion of children that use the oral health care system that

is already established. Moreover, the school-based health centers that have an oral health

component with dental sealants seek to be increased (HP.gov, n.d.). The number of healthcare

professionals in the field of dental care also seeks to be increased, and this would aid in better

oral care. The evaluation strategies for these interventions is through a monitoring and evaluation

plan by National Oral Health Surveillance System (NOHSS) that analyzes data for consistency.

Moreover, the pre and post invention surveys are regularly conducted by the CDC in schools and

community levels (Moore et al., 2019).

ORAL HEALTH AMONGST CHILDREN IN GEORGIA 6

References

Arora, A., Khattri, S., Ismail, N. M., Kumbargere Nagraj, S., & Prashanti, E. (2017). School

dental screening programs for oral health. The Cochrane database of systematic reviews,

12(12), CD012595. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD012595.pub2

Cao S, Gentili M, Griffin PM, Griffin SO & Serban N. (2017). Disparities in Preventive Dental

Care among Children in Georgia. Prev Chronic Dis, 14: 170176. DOI:

http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd14.170176

HealthyPeople. gov. HP2020: Oral Health. Retrieved from

https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/oral-health/objectives

Kabore HJ, Smith C, Bernal J, Parker D, Csukas S, Chapple-McGruder T. (2014). The Burden of

Oral Health in Georgia. Georgia Department of Public Health, Maternal and Child

Health, Office of MCH Epidemiology, Georgia Oral Health Program.

Moore, C., Reznik, D. & Bussenius, H. (2019).OH-I-CAN: Oral Health in Georgia. Clinical

Scholars. Retrieved from https://clinicalscholarsnli.org/projects/the-burden-of-poor-oral-

health-in-georgia/