Motor-impairment and OHRQoL in cerebral palsy children with dental caries

Aim or Purpose: To investigate the association between motor impairment and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) of children and adolescents with cerebral palsy (CP) suffering from dental caries in a low-resource setting. Materials and Methods: A total of 90 children and adolescents with CP of 2-17 years old, were selected from the Bangladesh cerebral palsy register (BCPR). The decayed, missing and filled teeth (dmft/DMFT) index was used to measure caries experience. Motor impairment data was extracted from the BCPR using the Gross motor function classification system (GMFCS). The Child perceptions questionnaire (CPQ) and Family impact scale (FIS) were used to assess the impact on OHRQoL. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS version 24.0. Results: Dental caries was observed among 55.6% of the CP participants and 76% children and adolescents with presence of dental caries classified GMFCS I-III and 26% were classified as GMFCS IV-V. After age and gender adjustment, binary logistic regression analysis showed that motor impairment was significantly associated among CP children and adolescents who had difficulty in eating, drinking, or chewing firm foods (rate ratio 12.7; p=0.02), avoid smiling (rate ratio 6.8; p=0.03) and those who had less time for the family (rate ratio: 5.0; p=0.02). Conclusions: Motor impairment is associated with a negative impact on OHRQoL in terms of perceptions of both children and adolescents with CP with dental caries. Oral health promotion programs should be implemented with a focus on adaptive care and education for children and adolescents with CP and their families with a higher degree of motor impairment in low-resource setting.