Differences in dental service utilization by rural children with and without participation in Head Start.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess differences in dental and medical care utilization for dental problems between rural Head Start (HS) participants and a nonexposed group.

Methods: A matched retrospective cohort study was conducted using chi-square, Poisson, and logistic regression models. We linked Medicaid claims and HS enrollment data for 7 rural counties in South Carolina to examine oral health service utilization in dental, primary care (PC), and emergency room (ER) settings.