18 - Dental Pain and Access to Care in Children: Parent Perspective

Purpose: To assess the prevalence of dental pain and corresponding referral sources, demographics and access to care at Boston Children's Hospital (BCH) Department of Dentistry.

Methods: Guardians of patients 1-20 years were sent electronic surveys via REDCap within one month of their dental clinic visit. Data analyzed with descriptive statistics, prevalence, Chi-Square test, and Pearson correlation analysis.

Results: A total of 549 responses were collected, 260 (47%) patients [mean age (SD)=8.3(4.1) years] reported dental pain. Of these patients, 13% sought care at an emergency room(ER), 66% were referred to BCH and 35% identified as patients with special healthcare needs. The most common referrers were pediatricians (32%), followed by community dentists (25%), and the ER (4%). Other referral sources (4%) include medical specialists and community health centers. Caries without infection or abscess (43%) were the most common reason for dental pain, followed by dental abscesses or infections (19%), dental trauma (14%), and other conditions (24%) such as defective restorations and dental appliances. Dental pain was resolved in 69% of respondents after their BCH dental clinic visit. Respondents identified as 27% White, 20% Black or African American, 15% Asian, 10% multiracial, and 9% as “other,” with 29% Hispanic/Latinx.

Conclusions: With 47% of respondents reporting recent dental pain and 69% of the concerns resolved, it is imperative to continue to strive for increased accessibility to care. Dental caries prevention and proactive treatment is recommended to prevent and address dental pain in children.

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