The relationship between the clinical status of permanent first molars in children and dental neglect

Children experiencing dental neglect are often exposed to persistent pain that diminishes quality of life and adversely affects overall developmental progress. Failure to prevent or treat caries occurring in early childhood in a timely manner may lead to dental neglect and contribute to the development of carious lesions in the permanent dentition later in life. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between DMFT, DMFS, and PUFA values of Permanent first molars (PFMs) and the level of dental neglect in children aged 7–10 years and to contribute to the existing body of knowledge in this field. This study is a cross-sectional study involving 234 children aged 7–10 and their parents. The four permanent first molars that had erupted in the children’s mouths were examined, and their DMFT, DMFS, and PUFA values ​​for these teeth were recorded. Parents then completed the Dental Neglect Scale (DNS), and the data were recorded. Data analysis were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 27. The relationships between DMFS, DMFT, and PUFA scores of PFMs and DNS scores were analyzed using Spearman’s correlation analysis. The mean DMFT, DMFS, PUFA, and DNS scores for the PFMs were 2.41 ± 1.54, 4.13 ± 3.34, 0.34 ± 0.71, and 15.94 ± 3.59, respectively. No significant correlation was found between DNS scores and DMFT-PFM (rho = 0.106; p > 0.05) or DMFS-PFM (rho = 0.097; p > 0.05) scores. However, a weak positive and statistically significant correlation was observed between DNS scores and PUFA-PFM scores (rho = 0.174; p = 0.008). Parental dental neglect appears to be more strongly associated with the advanced consequences of untreated caries in PFMs rather than with early caries experience. These findings emphasize the importance of early parental awareness and preventive care.