Prevalence and impact of dental caries and consequences of non-treatment on the quality of life of schoolchildren.

Background: Several oral alterations such as dental caries can affect the quality of life of children, adolescents and their families. The objective of the present study was to identify the prevalence of dental caries and the consequences of non-treatment and the impact on the quality of life of schoolchildren 8-10 years of age. Methods: The sample was comprised of 1,315 schoolchildren belonging to 24 municipal schools. The prevalence of caries and the consequences of untreated caries were obtained by the DMFT/deft and PUFA/pufa indexes, respectively, and categorized in schoolchildren as: caries free, caries history, carious and consequences of untreated caries. Quality of life was assessed by the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ8-10). Data were analyzed descriptively and by logistic regression analysis with a 95% level of significance. Results: The DMFT / deft was 1.43 (± 1.958) / 0.28 (± 0.693) and PUFA / pufa was 0.22 (± 0.689) / 0.01 (± 0.106) with a prevalence of 44 2% and 13.6%, respectively. The oral condition related to dental caries has an impact on the quality of life (p <0.001), children with caries (OR = 1.75; 95% CI: 1.301 to 2.367) and consequences of non- treatment (OR = 2.33; 95% CI: 1.599 to 3.418) is more likely to have a worse impact on the quality of life. Conclusion: It is concluded that the prevalence of dental caries is 44.2%, and the consequence of untreated caries is 13.6%. The oral condition related to dental caries has an impact on the quality of life, dental caries and the consequences of untreated caries increase the chances of a negative impact.