To examine the association between unmet need for effective pediatric care coordination and the prevalence of ≥1oral health problem among children with mental, emotional, developmental, and behavioral disorders in the United States. Data were from the 2022–23 National Survey of Children's Health ( N = 25,576). Oral health problems were defined as ≥1 of the following: gum disease, dental cavity, or dental pain, reported by parents of children aged 3–17 with mental, emotional, developmental, and behavioral disorders (≤12 months). A multivariable Poisson regression model was used to examine the associations between ≥1 oral health problem and effective pediatric care coordination, adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, region, and dental visits. Of the 17,388 children who needed care coordination, those without effective pediatric care coordination (25.9%) had a higher adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) of ≥1 oral health problem compared to those who received effective pediatric care coordination (17.3%; aPR: 1.49, 95% CI: 1.33–1.66) after adjusting for covariates. Our study reports a strong association between the unmet need for effective pediatric care coordination and the prevalence of ≥1 oral health problem among children with mental, emotional, developmental, and behavioral disorders. • About 45.6% of children with mental disorders lacked needed care coordination. • A lack of effective pediatric care coordination was associated with oral problems. • Oral problems were 18.0% more prevalent among children without care coordination.
Amedari et al. (Wed,) studied this question.