Queen's University Belfast

Academic Institute

Ciaran O'Neill

E056

Diabetes in Northern Ireland has a prevalence of 4.5 percent and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) a prevalence of approximately 1.6 percent. With approximately 23,000 births per annum in Northern Ireland this suggests a minimum of approximately 370 pregnancies per annum in which the child may have been exposed to poor glycaemic control in utero. A small literature has posited the existence of a link between prenatal exposure to gestational diabetes mellitus and an increased risk of developmental defects in the enamel of offspring. This has suggested that GDM may be associated with defects in the dental enamel of offspring to that pregnancy that in turn may impact on subsequent prevalence of decayed, missing and filled teeth in children. The studies were small and evidence of the relationship remains inconclusive. If a relationship between GDM or diabetes more generally on the part of the mother and the oral health of offspring from the pregnancy can be established, however, it may provide for the deployment of targeted preventive interventions to improve health and reduce health inequalities. This study will examine the relationship between GDM and treated diabetes status of mothers and subsequent use of oral health services of children using dyads of mothers and children in Northern Ireland between 2012 and 2020.

Northern Ireland has amongst the worst oral health status of children in the UK. Sharp socio-economic gradients have been demonstrated in use of restorative care, with those of lower socio-economic status having much higher rates of treated caries than are experienced by those of higher socio-economic status. While attempts to improve health and reduce health inequalities have focused on greater use of preventive services, these have met with limited success in part because of an inability to effectively target those at risk of poor health outcomes. This project will examine the relationship between maternal diabetes status and child use of restorative care where a relationship between enamel and glycaemic control during pregnancy has been posited. By so doing it has the potential to inform subsequent targeting of preventive health measures thereby improving the efficiency and equity of service delivery.

24/08/2020

TRE