Key Determinants of Oral and Dental Health Promotion in 6-12 years old Primary School Children: A Comprehensive Overview

Objectives: Children between 6 to 12 years are among the most important target groups for oral and dental health (O-DH) promotion programs due to high prevalence of dental caries. International organizations have strict recommendations regarding school-based implementation of oral health educational programs and preventive interventions as a low-cost, effective, and accessible approach for most children. Previous studies mainly evaluated a limited number of parameters involving development of oral diseases. However, dental caries remains as a health dilemma and is considered a silent epidemic. Thus, this study aimed to comprehensively identify and assess the factors affecting O-DH in 6- to 12-year-old elementary students. Methods: A comprehensive search was carried out in PubMed and Scopus databases for articles published between 2014-2023 addressing influential factors on O-DH promotion using selected keywords. Following initial screening and removal of duplicates, the results were imported to EndNote. Results: After assessing the title, abstract, and full-text, 31 eligible studies were included, and influential factors were extracted and categorized into 8 groups of oral health education, oral examinations and dental screening, healthy diet at home and school, exposure to fluoride in different forms and in sufficient amounts, tooth brushing and flossing, demographic factors, family socioeconomic status, and others. Conclusion: The results highlighted the significant role of school, family and oral health team in O-DH promotion of students, indicating that a proper cooperation among the three would bring about ideal results. Thus, schools with the involvement of parents and teachers under the guidance of oral health team can pave the way for O-DH promotion of students, and have a positive impact on the community as well. Therefore, further attention should be paid to implementation of oral health promotion educational programs and preventive interventions for elementary students.