Influence of an Intervention to Prevent Early Childhood Caries Initiated before Birth on Children's Use of Dental Services up to 7 Years of Age.

Background: In a previously reported randomised controlled trial, advising first time mothers on the prevention of early childhood caries from before their child was born, decreased the prevalence of early childhood caries at 20 months of age 5-fold.

Objective: We examined the effect of the intervention on the frequency and nature of dental visits up to 7 years of age.

Methods: Of 649 expectant mothers who participated in the trial, 277 completed a "Child Oral Health Survey" 7 years later.

In the literature: dispelling hallucinations about birthweight: how hard is it?

Birthweight is an important determinant of perinatal outcome and future health well into adulthood. Before weighing newborn infants became enshrined in practice, birthweights tended to be based on an educated guess or, as alleged by Roederer in 1753, on hallucination. Two centuries later, they led to a Babylonic confusion between weight and maturity at birth.

Influence of first-time mothers' early employment on severe early childhood caries in their child.

Aim. To examine whether mothers' early employment status is related to the development of severe early childhood caries in their child. Methods.

Effect of motherhood on women's preferences for sources of health information: a prospective cohort study.

To examine what sources of health information are preferred by first-time mothers-to-be and how these preferences change by the time their child reaches school age. Women expecting their first child (n = 649), recruited in a randomized trial of early childhood caries prevention at all five public maternity hospitals in Adelaide, were questioned about their preferences for health information. Their preferences were assessed again 4 and 7 years later.

Reassessment at 6-7 years of age of a randomized controlled trial initiated before birth to prevent early childhood caries.

Objectives: To assess whether the effect of providing mothers with guidance during pregnancy and when the child was 6 and 12 months old, which had drastically reduced the prevalence of early childhood caries at 20 months of age, would be sustained at 6-7 years of age.

Methods: Children, whose mothers had been enrolled in a randomized controlled trial during pregnancy and a comparison group of similar school children, were examined for the presence of caries by the South Australian School Dental Services (SA SDS) at 6-7 years of age.

Results: Of 625 eligible trial participants, 277 (44%) participated in the follow-up and dental records were available for 187 of them (30%).

Dealing with missing outcomes: lessons from a randomized trial of a prenatal intervention to prevent early childhood caries.

Severe early childhood caries (S-ECC) affects 17% of 2-3 year old children in South Australia impacting on their general health and well-being. S-ECC is largely preventable by providing mothers with anticipatory guidance. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are the most decisive way to test this, but that approach suffers from near inevitable loss to follow-up that occurs with preventative strategies and distant outcome assessment.

Women's attitudes to and perceptions of oral health and dental care during pregnancy.

Aims: To assess pregnant women's opinions on and perceptions of oral health and their relationship to oral hygiene and dental care practices.

Methods: Questionnaire survey on perceived oral health, oral hygiene and utilization of dental services among 649 nulliparae attending for antenatal care at all public antenatal clinics in Adelaide, South Australia.

Results: Women rated their general health significantly better than their oral health (P<0.

Efficacy of an oral health promotion intervention in the prevention of early childhood caries.

Objective: Despite a marked improvement in oral health of Australian children over the last 30 years, severe early childhood caries (S-ECC) affects up to 17% of 2- to 3-year-old children with some requiring hospitalization and invasive treatment. This provided a compelling rationale to develop and test an oral health promotion programme which aimed to reduce this unnecessary suffering. The purpose of this study was to test the efficacy of an oral health promotion programme for the parents of infants, starting during the pregnancy, using a randomized controlled trial.