Abstract
Background: Good oral health status is especially
important for pregnant women. A growing body of clinical research
supports the connection between poor oral health during pregnancy
and poor birth outcomes, including low birth weight. This
connection is likely due to the changes in a woman's immunity
during pregnancy, making her more susceptible to infection. Despite
this connection between oral health and pregnancy outcomes, many
women are not receiving the dental care they need during pregnancy.
Already serving a large and diverse population, WIC may be an
avenue for improving low-income women's awareness and access to
dental care during her pregnancy. This analysis seeks to find
whether WIC currently increases the likelihood pregnancy women are
accessing dental care.
Methods: This analysis used data from the Pregnancy
Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) database from six states,
Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Missouri, New York and South Carolina,
collected from 2004 - 2009. Women were determined to be eligible
for WIC using their reported income and household size variables
prior to giving birth. Using logistic regression models, we looked
at whether participation in the WIC program during pregnancy
increased the likelihood that a woman would go to a dentist,
receive dental education or receive preventative dental care.
Results: Among all eligible women, WIC participation
during pregnancy increased the odds that a woman would receive
dental education by 12-14%. However, women not reporting a dental
problem did not have increased odds that she would receive dental
education at a statistically significant level. For both the total
eligible population and women not reporting a dental problem, WIC
participation did not increase the odds a woman would go to the
dentist or receive preventative dental care during her pregnancy at
a statistically significant level. A state-level analysis found
that WIC participation did not increase the odds a woman would
receive preventative care in any of the six states included in this
analysis.
Discussion: This analysis provides a better picture of
how WIC impacts the dental care utilization of its pregnant
participants.
Table of Contents
Abstract...................................................................
ii
Acknowledgments.......................................................
iii
List of
Tables.............................................................
v
List of
Abbreviations....................................................
vi
I.
Introduction............................................................
1
II. Literature
Review.....................................................
2
III.
Methods................................................................10
IV.
Results.................................................................
19
V.
Discussion..............................................................
32
VI.
Conclusion.............................................................
39
VII. CDC
Acknowledgement............................................
40
VIII.
Appendix..............................................................41
IX.
References.............................................................42
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