Predictors of dental general anesthesia receipt among children attending a tertiary hospital in Saudi Arabia

Aim: Children are normally treated in a dental chair, despite that some may have their treatment done under dental general anesthesia (DGA). Factors affecting the decision on DGA include the quality and quantity of treatment needed and child's age and cooperation. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of DGA among children with dental caries and to identify the associated factors in a tertiary care setting in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 400 children with dental caries was conducted. Data were collected from the patients' records including demographic, behavioral, and clinical information, diagnosis using caries indexes (Decayed, Missing, Filled Teeth/decayed filled teeth [dft]), and number of DGA and its indications. Logistic regression analysis was applied to identify the predictors of DGA, and significance was considered at P ≤ 0.05. Results: The study included 400 children; 55% of them were below the age of 6 years, with a mean age of 6.4 ± 2.3 years. About one-half of children were males (51.7%) and unhealthy (48.2%). The majority were of negative behavior (70.7%) and noncomplaint to dental appointments (70.3%). More than three-fourth of children (78.5%) experienced one or more DGA. GA use was significantly associated with gender (χ 2 = 4.30, P < 0.04), age (t = 12.37, P < 0.0001), health status (χ 2 = 16.02, P < 0.0001), dft index (z = 11.44, P < 0.0001), child behavior (χ 2 = 48.54, P < 0.0001), age at the first dental visit (t = 11.73, P < 0.0001), number of dental treatment visits (z = 11.14, P < 0.0001) and dental preventive visits (z = 7.21, P < 0.0001) before the index dental visit, and compliance with dental appointments (χ 2 = 39.50, P < 0.001). However, after adjusting for confounders, using the logistic regression analysis, DGA use was predicted by unhealthy children (odds ratio [OR] = 27.35, P = 0.002), those with a negative behavior (OR = 18.28, P = 0.003), and those with higher dft index (OR = 1.68, P < 0.001). Conclusions: Noncooperation, general health status, and dental caries level (dft) were the main factors for the decision of DGA. High caries-risk children must be the target for behavioral management to minimize their need for treatment under DGA. Post-DGA appointment to guide the child back to normal dental care is recommended.