Dental Caries Is Negatively Associated with Allergic Rhinitis, Asthma and Atopic Dermatitis in Children
Objectives: To investigate the associations between allergic diseases and dental caries in children.
Methods: A total of 3,703 participants, aged four to 15 years, were enrolled from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) between 2010 and 2012. Participants were examined for dental caries by trained dental residents. Allergic rhinitis, asthma, and atopic dermatitis were surveyed. The correlations between the presence of dental caries and these allergic diseases were analysed using simple and multiple logistic regression analysis with complex sampling.
Results: The presence of dental caries showed a negative correlation with allergic diseases, even after adjusting for significant confounders. The presence of dental caries was inversely correlated with allergic rhinitis, asthma and atopic dermatitis, with adjusted odds ratios of 0.56, 0.55 and 0.74 respectively.
Conclusion: The presence of dental caries is negatively associated with allergic diseases in children.