Evaluating the Relationship Between Single-parent Families and Behavioral Problems of Children Referring to the Pediatric Department of Tabriz Dentistry Faculty

Abstract

Introduction: Considering the role of each parent in the moral and behavioral formation of the child, it seems that the absence of each parent in the child's life can affect the child's oral health behaviors and the child's cooperation and behavior in the dental environment. In the absence of a study on the effect of being a single parent on children's behavior in dentistry, there is no proper understanding of the behavioral problems of these children in dentistry. Therefore, to improve the quality of dental services for single-parent children, we decided to evaluate the relationship between single-parent families and behavioral problems of children referring to the pediatric department of Tabriz dentistry faculty Methods and Materials: In this cross-sectional case-control study, 42 single-parent children (case group) and 42 two-parent children (control group) were included in the study. First, prophylaxis was performed on the child's teeth and at the same time, the child's demographic information, the reason for the child's visit to the dentist, and information about the child's parents and family were recorded in the study questionnaire. Then, work on the mandibular second molar deciduous tooth was started after injection of the mandibular block, and when the tooth was cut and restored, the child's cooperation was measured and recorded by the observer according to the Frankel 4-point criterion. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney test, and the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: In this study, the rate of cooperation of single-parent children in dentistry was significantly lower than that of two-parent children (P <0.05). Also, being a single parent was reported to be effective on the child's health in 66.7% of cases and on the child's habits and behavior in 73.8% of cases. The child’s sex, the reason for being a single parent, the level of parental education, and the type of relationship of the child with other children in the family were the factors affecting the level of cooperation of these children in dentistry (all cases P <0.05). In contrast, the sex of the child's guardian parent, family economic status, and the number of children in the family did not have a significant effect on the level of cooperation of single-parent children in dentistry (all cases P≥0.05). Conclusion: It is recommended that dentists consider the factors affecting their cooperation in dentistry to attract the cooperation and effective treatment of single-parent children.