Insurance Status And Dental Disease in Virginia Schoolchildren

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to use data obtained from the 1999 Virginia Statewide Oral Health Survey to provide a descriptive account of the oral health status for Virginia schoolchildren and examine the relationship between a child\u27s insurance status and indicators of oral health status.Methods: The Division of Dental Health (DDH), in the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), completed the 1999 Virginia Oral Health Needs Assessment (VSOHNA) in cooperation with the Virginia Department of Education. The survey used a probability proportional to size (PPS) sample design in selecting school children from public schools in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Descriptive and multi-variable regression analyses were completed to examine the relationship between insurance status and oral health status indicators. Results: In the primary dentition, schoolchildren with medical and dental insurance had the highest level of caries-free teeth at 46%, compared to the schoolchildren with no insurance at 34%, and those with medical insurance only at 31%. In the primary dentition, schoolchildren with no insurance had the highest prevalence of untreated decay at 65%, when compared to schoolchildren with medical insurance only at 42%, and those with both medical and dental insurance at 25%. There were no significant relationships between insurance status and caries experience or untreated decay in the permanent dentition.Conclusion: In the primary dentition, children with no insurance or medical insurance only were more likely to have untreated decay than those with both medical and dental insurance. Insurance status does not appear to be associated with caries experience or with untreated disease in the permanent dentition