BHPR: Audit and Clinical Evaluation103. Dental Health in Children and Young Adults with Inflammatory Arthritis: Access to Dental Care

Background: Children and young adults with JIA have increased levels of poor oral hygiene and dental decay [1]. Periodontitis and types of arthritis are linked by similar components of blood cytokine profiles. Good dental health can be directly affected in JIA patients due to physical limitations in upper limb movements making brushing and flossing teeth difficult. An important factor in oral care is good dental hygiene and access to dental health practitioners. NHS advice is that all children should be reviewed by a dentist annually and be offered both sealant of their teeth and fluoride varnish at the appropriate time. Our aim was to establish if our patients had any barriers to accessing dental care. Methods: All patients (age 18 and under) diagnosed with JIA in the paediatric rheumatology clinic over a period of 3 months were asked to complete a dental care questionnaire. Parents completed the questionnaire for their children if necessary. Data were analysed using Excel. Results: 30 questionnaires were completed. Demographics were M:F 1:1.3, all children were diagnosed with JIA, average age 10.5 years with range 2–18. 27 children were registered with an NHS dentist with the exception of one child with a private dentist. 26 children had seen a dentist at least annually and one child in the past 2 years. 2 children, one aged 16, were not registered with a dentist because their parents didn’t think it was important. 11 children had 25 fillings in total, 9 of these children were not supervised during dental hygiene. 13 children admitted to drinking sugary drinks daily and had 16 dental fillings. None of the children admitted to smoking. Conclusions: Whilst our audit showed that most children were registered with a dentist and were reviewed annually, only 1 child had been offered sealant and fluoride varnish. The NHS advises that children with chronic medical conditions can be seen either by their NHS dentist or by the local Community specialist dental service which can be accessed by referral from their rheumatology department or NHS dentist. None of the children were seen by the specialist dental service. We have developed an information leaflet informing parents and children with JIA of the importance of dental health explaining the benefits of both sealant and fluoride for teeth.