McGill Journal of Medicine (Dec 2020)

Dientes ChiquiTICOS: an analysis of juvenile dentition and dental health in Costa Rican indigenous communities

  • Alfredo García,
  • Christina M. Guzzo

DOI
https://doi.org/10.26443/mjm.v10i2.696
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 2

Abstract

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This study surveyed the dental health of three Costa Rican indigenous populations and two rural, non-indigenous communities. Sixty-six individuals, both children and adults, were interviewed regarding dental hygiene practices and the dentition of eighty-eight children from the ages of two to thirteen was examined. The indigenous populations, on average, showed a more important number of anterior dental pathologies as compared to a non-indigenous group (42% vs 20%). Collectively, both access to and utilization of dental healthcare were worse within the indigenous communities; however, there was still great variation amongst all five sites.

Keywords