Research Article
Investigation of Interaction between Vitamin D Receptor Gene Polymorphisms and Environmental Factors in Early Childhood Caries in Chinese Children
Table 2
Demographic characteristics and environmental risk factors for caries in the studied population.
| | Variables | Caries-free group (n = 245) | Moderate caries risk group (n = 156) | High caries risk group (n = 148) | | |
| | Age | | | | 5.019 | 0.285 | | 3 years | 70 (28.6) | 35 (22.4) | 30 (20.3) | | | | 4 years | 71 (29.0) | 50 (32.1) | 42 (28.4) | | | | 5 years | 104 (42.4) | 71 (45.5) | 76 (51.4) | | |
| | Gender (male/female) | 108/137 (44.1/55.9) | 85/71 (54.5/45.5) | 65/83 (43.9/56.1) | 4.912 | 0.086 |
| | Birth weight | | | | — | 0.452 | | <2.5 kg/≥2.5 kg | 5/235 (2.1/97.9) | 3/148 (2.0/98.0) | 6/14 (4.1/95.9) | | | | Missing | 5 | 5 | 1 | | |
| | Time of first tooth eruption | | | | 9.129 | 0.058 | | ≤6 mos | 120 (56.3) | 100 (69.0) | 85 (62.5) | | | | 6–8 mos | 69 (32.4) | 29 (20.0) | 31 (22.8) | | | | ≥9 mos | 24 (11.3) | 16 (11.0) | 20 (14.7) | | | | Missing | 32 | 11 | 12 | | |
| | Father’s education level | | | | 1.219 | 0.875 | | Elementary | 12 (4.9) | 7 (4.5) | 4 (2.7) | | | | High school | 24 (9.8) | 16 (10.3) | 16 (10.8) | | | | College and higher | 209 (85.3) | 133 (85.3) | 128 (86.5) | | |
| | Mother’s education level | | | | 5.142 | 0.273 | | Elementary | 16 (6.5) | 6 (3.8) | 3 (2.0) | | | | High school | 27 (11.0) | 19 (12.2) | 21 (14.2) | | | | College and higher | 202 (82.4) | 131 (84.0) | 124 (83.8) | | |
| | Feeding pattern before 6 mos old (%) | | | | 18.614 | 0.017 | | Exclusively breastfed | 76 (31.0) | 56 (35.9) | 69 (46.6) | | | | Predominantly breastfed | 68 (27.8) | 36 (23.1) | 44 (29.7) | | | | Exclusively formula fed | 22 (9.0) | 11 (7.1) | 4 (2.7) | | | | Predominantly formula fed | 22 (9.0) | 13 (8.3) | 7 (4.7) | | | | Mixed fed (50/50) | 57 (23.3) | 40 (25.6) | 24 (16.2) | | |
| | Breast feeding duration | | | | 22.795 | 0.001 | | ≤6 mos | 70 (28.9) | 38 (24.5) | 17 (11.5) | | | | 6–12 mos | 53 (21.9) | 49 (31.6) | 37 (25.0) | | | | 12–18 mos | 74 (30.6) | 38 (24.5) | 58 (39.2) | | | | ≥18 mos | 45 (18.6) | 30 (19.4) | 36 (24.3) | | | | Missing | 3 | 1 | | | |
| | Mouth-to-mouth or chewing to feed | | | | — | 0.882 | | Often | 2 (0.8) | 1 (0.6) | 2 (1.4) | | | | Occasionally | 43 (17.6) | 32 (20.5) | 26 (17.6) | | | | Never | 200 (81.6) | 123 (78.8) | 120 (81.1) | | |
| | Night milk or nipple sleep | | | | 9.661 | 0.047 | | Often | 47 (19.2) | 44 (28.2) | 46 (31.1) | | | | Occasionally | 78 (31.8) | 52 (33.3) | 43 (29.1) | | | | Never | 120 (49.0) | 60 (38.5) | 59 (39.9) | | |
| | Dessert consumption before sleeping | | | | 21.405 | <.001 | | Often | 5 (2.0) | 6 (3.8) | 9 (6.1) | | | | Occasionally | 113 (46.1) | 84 (53.8) | 96 (64.9) | | | | Never | 127 (51.8) | 66 (42.3) | 43 (29.1) | | |
| | Milk consumption before sleeping | | | | 4.237 | 0.375 | | Often | 80 (32.7) | 57 (36.5) | 54 (36.5) | | | | Occasionally | 107 (43.7) | 70 (44.9) | 71 (48.0) | | | | Never | 58 (23.7) | 29 (18.6) | 23 (15.5) | | |
| | Dessert or candy intake frequency | | | | 7.550 | 0.110 | | Less often than daily | 208 (84.9) | 119 (76.3) | 111 (75.0) | | | | Once a day | 26 (10.6) | 24 (15.4) | 24 (16.2) | | | | Twice a day or more | 11 (4.5) | 13 (8.3) | 13 (8.8) | | |
| | Sweet or acidic drinks intake frequency | | | | — | 0.992 | | Less often than daily | 237 (96.7) | 150 (96.2) | 144 (97.3) | | | | Once a day | 5 (2.0) | 4 (2.6) | 3 (2.0) | | | | Twice a day or more | 3 (1.2) | 2 (1.3) | 1 (0.7) | | |
| | Milk with sugar intake frequency | | | | 2.062 | 0.724 | | Less often than daily | 192 (78.4) | 127 (81.4) | 123 (83.1) | | | | Once a day | 46 (18.8) | 24 (15.4) | 20 (13.5) | | | | Twice a day or more | 7 (2.9) | 5 (3.2) | 5 (3.4) | | |
| | Toothbrushing (yes/no) | 191/54 (78.0/22.0) | 118/38 (75.6/24.4) | 126/22 (85.1/14.9) | 4.598 | 0.100 | | Age when toothbrushing started | | | | 5.565 | 0.062 | | ≤12 mos/>12 mos | 72/173 (29.4/0.6) | 34/122 (21.8/78.2) | 29/118 (19.7/80.3) | | |
| | Tooth brushing frequency | | | 6.169 | 0.187 | | | Twice per day | 47 (19.2) | 26 (16.7) | 37 (25.0) | | | | Once per day | 122 (49.8) | 88 (56.4) | 78 (52.7) | | | | Occasionally or never | 76 (31.0) | 42 (26.9) | 33 (22.3) | | |
| | Adult-assisted toothbrushing | | | | 4.295 | 0.637 | | Every day | 52 (21.3) | 32 (20.5) | 35 (24.0) | | | | Often | 88 (36.1) | 59 (37.8) | 54 (37.0) | | | | Occasionally | 76 (31.1) | 49 (31.4) | 49 (33.6) | | | | Never | 28 (11.5) | 16 (10.3) | 8 (5.5) | | | | Missing | 1 | | 2 | | |
| | Brushing with toothpaste | | | | 3.744 | 0.154 | | Yes/no | 229/14 (94.2/5.8) | 146/10 (93.6/6.4) | 145/3 (98.0/2.0) | | | | Missing | 2 | | | | |
| | Fluoride toothpaste or not | | | | 2.157 | 0.707 | | Yes | 55 (22.6) | 33 (21.2) | 32 (21.6) | | | | No | 124 (51.0) | 90 (57.7) | 77 (52.0) | | | | Do not know& amp | 64 (26.3) | 33 (21.2) | 39 (26.4) | | | | Missing | 2 | | | | |
| | Cariostat value | | | | 56.198 | <.001 | | 0–0.5 | 70 (28.6) | 26 (16.7) | 7 (4.7) | | | | 1.0 | 58 (23.7) | 25 (16.0) | 17 (11.5) | | | | 1.5–3.0 | 117 (47.8) | 105 (67.3) | 124 (83.8) | | |
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&Do not know: do not know if the toothpaste used contains fluoride. When cells had expected count <5, Fisher’s exact test was used. |
