Caries severity and socioeconomic inequalities in a nationwide setting: data from the Italian National pathfinder in 12-years children

This study presents the result of the second National pathfinder conducted in Italy on children’s oral health, reporting the prevalence and severity of caries in 12-year old children and describing the caries figure related to the socioeconomic inequalities, both at individual level and macroeconomic level. The two-digit codes related to ICDAS (International Caries Detection and Assessment System) for each tooth and the gingival bleeding score were recorded at school on 7,064 children (48.97% males and 51.03% females). The Gross National Product (GNP) per capita, the Gini Index and Unemployment rate in each Italian section, parents’ educational levels, working status, smoking habit and their ethnic background were recorded. Zero-inflated-negative-binomial (ZINB) models were run, using caries-free teeth, teeth with enamel lesions, cavitated lesions and restorations as functions of socioeconomic explanatory variables, to evaluate the effects of justifiable economic factors of geographical distribution. The mean number of enamel lesions, cavitated lesions and filled per teeth were statistically significant (p < 0.01) dissimilar among the Italian section. GNP per capita, Gini Index and Unemployment rate were significantly correlated to ICDAS scores and filled teeth. Important differences in ICDAS score values remain among children from different socioeconomic backgrounds. Efforts should be made to improve awareness and knowledge regarding oral health practice and to implement preventive programs and access to dental services in Southern Italy where the disease is still unresolved.