Self-esteem and dental caries in adolescents: a cross sectional study

Abstract Introduction Dental caries in adolescents remains an important public health problem, but its relationship with psychological factors are poorly studied. Objective To study the possible association between aspects of self-esteem and dental caries in adolescents. Material and method A cross-sectional study involving a sample of 409 adolescents from 13 Southern Brazilian municipalities was carried out. Dental caries status was assessed through the World Health Organization criteria. For questions related to self-esteem the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was used. The outcomes were each question of the scale. The chi-square test was used to determine statistical significance of associations. To adjust for confounding variables, the Poisson loglinear with robust estimator was used. Result Positive associations were observed for the presence of decayed teeth and “At times, I think I am no good at all” (p<0.001), “I wish I could have more respect for myself” (p= 0.016), “I certainly feel useless at times” (p= 0.022) and negative association with “On the whole, I am satisfied with myself” (p= 0.022). In the adjusted analysis, adolescents with decayed teeth had a higher prevalence of positive responses to “At times, I think I am no good at all” [(PR= 1.23 (CI 95% 1.05; 1.44)], and negative responses for “On the whole, I am satisfied with myself” [(PR= 1.12 (CI 95% 1.02; 1.24)]. Conclusion Aspects of self-esteem were significantly and independently associated with the presence of decayed teeth.