Oral Health Care for Children and Youth With Developmental Disabilities: Clinical Report

• DOI: 10.1542/peds.2024-067603
• Publication Date: 2024-07-22T08:06:25Z
• Authors: Elise Sarvas; Jessica Webb; Mary Landrigan-Ossar; Larry Yin; ; Jeffrey M. Karp; Eric L. Beyer; Chevon Brooks; Lauren M. Feldman; C. Eve Kimball; Anupama Rao Tate; Karen Sokal-Gutie...; John H. Unkel; Matt Zaborowski; Matt Crespin; Amr Moursi; Kera Beskin; ; Garey Noritz; Rishi Agrawal; Deanna Bell; Jessica E.A. Foster; Ellen Fremion; Sheryl Frierson; Michelle E. Melic...; Barbara S. Saunders; Siddharth Srivastava; Jilda Vargus-Adams; Katharine E. Zuck...; Dennis Z. Kuo; Jeffrey P. Brosco; Carol Weitzman; Matthew Sadof; Allysa Ware; Marshalyn Yeargin...; Jennifer Poon; Marshalyn Yeargin...; Alexandra Kuznetsov; ; Debnath Chatterjee; Christina Diaz; Elizabeth Drum; Justin Long; Lena Sun; Brittany Willer; Mary Landrigan-Ossar; James J. Fehr; Yuan-Chi Lin; Adam C. Adler; Jennifer Riefe
• Keywords: 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Adolescent; Dental Care for Disabled; Developmental Disabilities; Humans; Oral Health; Dental Caries; Child; Dental Care for Children

Oral health is an essential component of overall health for all individuals. The oral health of children and youth with developmental disabilities (CYDD) involves unique characteristics and needs of which pediatricians and pediatric clinicians can be aware. Risk for oral disease in CYDD is multifactorial and includes underlying medical conditions, medications, and ability to participate in preventive oral health care and treatment, and lack of access to providers is common for this population despite being eligible for Medicaid. Pediatric clinicians are uniquely positioned to support the oral health needs of CYDD and their families through the medical home. This clinical report aims to inform pediatric clinicians about the unique oral health needs of CYDD. It provides guidance on assessing caries risk and periodontal status using structured screening instruments; understanding dental trauma, the role of diet and caries risk, trauma prevention, and malocclusion; and providing anticipatory guidance on oral hygiene that includes tooth brushing, use of fluoridated toothpaste, assessing community water fluoridation, advocating for a dental home by 1 year of age, and transition to adult dental care as part of adolescent health care. It also highlights special considerations for dental treatment rendered under sedation or general anesthesia that CYDD may need. Pediatric clinicians can help reduce risk of CYDD developing dental disease by understanding the unique needs of their patients and their barriers to accessing oral health care in their community, communicating with the child’s dental home, and advocating for safe and accessible dental procedures.