Access to dental care for children with special health care needs: a cross-sectional community survey within Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

The aim of this study was to investigate the level of dental care access among children with special health care needs (CSHCN) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and the barriers hindering this access. Data of this cross-sectional study were obtained from self-administered surveys distributed through seven CSHCN centers. Children with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, and developmental delay were included. Univariate and bivariate analyses were conducted to describe the data. A total of 602 study participants were included in the analyses. Only 24.9% of the participated caregivers routinely visited the dentist for their CSHCN. Half of CSHCN caregivers found difficulties obtaining dental treatment. This trend was significantly greater in 12-18 years old children (p = 0.013) and in families commuting for more than one hour to dental clinics (p = 0.045). The most common reported barrier was fear of the dentist (61.6%) followed by child uncooperativeness (37.8%) and treatment costs (27.8%). CSHCN lack sufficient dental care for a variety of reasons, primarily fear of dentists, child uncooperativeness, and treatment costs. Dentists require more training and education to facilitate better access to dental care for CSHCN.