Central Annals of Public Health and Research Cite this article: Ahmadzadeh J, Rezaeian S, Esmahili-Sani A, Lava B, Mobaraki K, et al. (2015) Oral Health Status and Behaviors of Children Aged 6-12 Years Old: A Cross-Sectional Study. Ann Public Health Res 2(2): 1017. *Corresponding author He a lth Pro mo tio n Re se a rc h C e nte r, Za he d a n Unive rsity o f Me d ic a l Sc ie nc e s, Ra zi Stre e t, Za he d a n, Ira n, Te l: 989-189-814-634; Fax: 985-412-420-014; Email: Submitte d: 12 Marc h 2015 Accepted: 06 April 2015 Publishe d: 08 April 2015 Copyright © 2015 Re za e ia n e t a l. OPEN ACCESS Ke ywo rds • O ra l he a lth • C a rie s • C hild re n • DMFT Research Article Oral Health Status and Behaviors of Children Aged 6-12 Years Old: A Cross- Sectional Study Jamal Ahmadzadeh 1 , Shahab Rezaeian 2 *, Abbas Esmahili-Sani 3 , Bafrin Lava 3 , Kazhal Mobaraki 3 , Saide Amini 3 and Sepideh Amini 3 1 Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Iran 2 Health Promotion Research Center, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Iran 3 Vice-Chancellor of Health Services, Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Iran Abstract Dental caries is the most prevalent chronic disease affecting a large portion of children in Iran. The aim of present study was to investigate factors associated with dental caries among children. This cross-sectional study was conducted in Sardasht City, the northwest of Iran, enrolling 448 children aged 6-12 years old based on census method. Clinical examination was conducted and the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria were for caries diagnosis. Odds Ratio (OR) estimates for factors associated with dental caries using STATA software. The prevalence of dental caries was 49.3% and the mean DMFT score was 1.4 [95% CI: 1.2, 1.6]. Odds ratio indicated that older ages, time of tooth brushing and sugar consumption were associated with having dental caries after controlling for other variables. The effects of fathers’ education, gender, accompanied disease and dry mouth were not signiicant on dental caries. In conclusion, dental caries in children aged 6-12 years old was prevalent in the studied district and found to be a public health problem. Sugar consumption, time spent tooth brushing, and older ages were important factors associated with dental caries. Comprehensive and effective strategies will be needed to reduce the sugar consumption among children. ABBREVIATIONS DMFT: Decayed Missing and Filled Tooth INTRODUCTION Dental caries is a major public health challenge worldwide [1] because of its high prevalence and concomitant risks of other diseases [2,3]. Based on oral health surveys in the past decades (1988-1998), it was found that 50% of the children aged 12 years old in Iran were affected by dental caries and there has been a decline in dental caries from DMFT of 4 to 1.5 [4]. However, the general level of oral health is still not satisfactory, particularly among children. Previous epidemiological studies have reported that the incidence of dental caries is increasing gradually due to several factors including: the growing consumption of sugary substances, alcohol, substance abuse, cigarette smoking, poor oral hygiene, poor oral care practices and inadequate health service utilization [5-7]. A recent epidemiological data [5] found early childhood dental caries is prevalent among the preschool children and caries experience is also associated with their oral health-related behaviours, socio-economic background, parental education and dental knowledge. In addition, other studies have found a significant relationship between parental education level and their children’s oral health status [8,9]. Despite the fact that oral diseases, especially dental caries affect the majority of Iranian children, less is known about the extents and factors affecting the occurrence of dental caries, oral care practices and health care seeking behavior in most parts of the country particularly in the study area of Sardasht City. The aim of this study was to obtain baseline information on the dental caries situation of children aged 6-12 years old and the factors associated with their caries status that is necessary for planning of intervention programs in schools.