Ten years on: is dental general anaesthesia in childhood a risk factor for caries and anxiety?

Objectives: To identify whether DGA status is informative in assessing risk of caries or dental anxiety by (a) describing long-term oral health and dental anxiety for people who underwent dental general anaesthesia (DGA) in childhood and(b) testing whether DGA status in childhood is associated with incident future dental caries or anxiety independently of preconceived risk factors. Design: Analysis of prospectively obtained data. Setting: An established population based cohortin the UK, the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Participants and methods: In total 1,695 participants withdental data in childhood and adolescence were included in analysis. DGA status by age 7 and oral health measures at age17 were identified from questionnaire data. Main outcome measures: Filled or extracted permanent teeth at age 17, Corah Dental Anxiety Scale. Results: One hundred and twenty-eight (7.6%) participants underwent DGA in childhood. Individuals who underwent DGA had higher measures of filled or extracted permanent teeth in adolescence (0.36 more affected teeth in fully-adjusted model [95% confidence interval: 0.27, 0.55; P <0.001]). Conclusions: DGA in childhood predicts burden of treated caries in adolescence, independently of other risk factors. DGA status may be a clinically useful adjunct in identifying young people at high risk of further disease.