The relationship between oral health status and passive smoking and related factors in children aged 3–10 years

Background: Passive smoking, or exposure to environmental tobacco smoke, remains a significant public health concern worldwide, particularly affecting children’s systemic and oral health. Previous research has identified associations between passive smoking and increased dental caries risk, but local evidence integrating clinical and behavioral factors in Türkiye is limited. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between passive smoking and oral health outcomes in children aged 3–10 years considering sociodemographic characteristics, oral hygiene behaviors, and fluoride use. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted with 136 children attending the Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Gülhane Faculty of Dentistry, University of Health Sciences. The case group included children with smoking parents (n=72) and the control group children with non-smoking parents (n=72). Data were collected via structured parental questionnaires on demographics, smoking habits, and oral health-related behaviors, alongside clinical examinations assessing the decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT/dmft), pulpal involvement, ulceration, fistula, abscess (PUFA/pufa), and Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (OHI-S) indices. Statistical analyses included Pearson’s chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test, Student’s t-test, Mann–Whitney U test, and logistic regression to determine factors associated with high dmft scores (p