29 June 2025 : Clinical Research
Key Factors Influencing Caries Development in Preschoolers: A Focus on Socio-Demographic, Maternal Health, and Salivary Biomarkers in 3-Year-Olds
Branislava Stojkovic ABCDEF 1*, Marija Igic ACD 2, Tatjana Jevtovic Stoimenov ACD 3, Olivera Trickovic Janjic
AD 2, Aleksandra Ignjatovic ACD 4, Milos Kostic AD 5, Simona Stojanovic EF 2, Milica Petrovic EF 2, Ana Stojanovic EF 2, Zorana Velickovic EF 2
DOI: 10.12659/MSM.948857
Med Sci Monit 2025; 31:e948857
Table 3 Sociodemographic, oral health behavior, maternal, clinical, and examined salivary characteristics of children regarding 1-year caries incidence.
| No caries | With caries | P value1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | ||
| Gender | |||||
| Male | 53 | 45.3 | 23 | 47.9 | 0.893 |
| Female | 64 | 54.7 | 25 | 52.1 | |
| Mothers’ education | |||||
| ≥12 years | 35 | 29.9 | 9 | 18.8 | 0.201 |
| <12 years | 82 | 70.1 | 39 | 81.3 | |
| Fathers’ education | |||||
| ≥12 years | 57 | 48.7 | 18 | 37.5 | 0.253 |
| <12 years | 60 | 51.3 | 30 | 62.5 | |
| Age of mothers | 35.4±4.7 | 34.8±4.7 | 0.4642 | ||
| Age of fathers | 37.6±5.4 | 37.4±4.0 | 0.8042 | ||
| Debris index (DI) | 0.82±0.29 | 1.11±0.39 | <0.0013 | ||
| Tooth brushing frequency | |||||
| <1 a day | 9 | 7.7 | 1 | 2.1 | 0.315 |
| 1 a day | 73 | 62.4 | 31 | 64.6 | |
| >1 a day | 35 | 29.9 | 16 | 33.3 | |
| Breastfeeding length (months) | 8.48±5.31 | 12.56±7.94 | <0.001 | ||
| The average number of daily meals | 4.6±0.9 | 4.6±0.8 | 0.854 | ||
| Frequency of refined carbohydrate intake | |||||
| <1 a day | 41 | 35.0 | 19 | 37.5 | 0.246 |
| 1 a day | 58 | 49.6 | 18 | 37.5 | |
| >1 a day | 18 | 15.4 | 12 | 25.0 | |
| Personal dentist | |||||
| Yes | 30 | 25.6 | 22 | 45.8 | 0.016 |
| No | 87 | 74.4 | 26 | 54.2 | |
| Number of visits to the dentist in the last 12 months | |||||
| Once | 39 | 33. | 20 | 41.7 | 0.689 |
| 2–4 times | 14 | 12.0 | 6 | 12.5 | |
| ≥5 times | 5 | 4.3 | 1 | 2.1 | |
| None | 59 | 50.4 | 21 | 43.8 | |
| Mother’s dental health (self-assessment) | |||||
| Good, has all teeth restored | 101 | 86.3 | 18 | 37.5 | <0.001 |
| Poor, has teeth that require restauration or extraction | 16 | 13.7 | 30 | 62.5 | |
| pH of unstimulated saliva | 7.27±0.23 | 7.41±0.30 | 0.1562 | ||
| HNP1 | 12.76±4.97 ng/mL | 12.49±3.66 ng/mL | 0.7903 | ||
| hBD-2 | 2.77±1.19 ng/mL | 2.71±0.88 ng/mL | 0.7903 | ||
| LL 37 | 1.35±1.64 ng/mL | 1.84±2.43 ng/mL | 0.2933 | ||
| 1 Chi-squared test, 2 test, 3 Mann-Whitney test. HNP-1 – human α45; defensin 1; hBD-2 – human β defensin 2; LL-37 – human cathelicidin. | |||||