THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN ORAL HEALTH AND RECURRENT RESPIRATORY INFECTIONS IN CHILDREN: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Background.The association between major dental diseases and recurrent upper and lower respiratory tract infections is of interest due to their high prevalence in the child population. The aim of our study is to analyze the literature where this problem has been studied. Materials and methods.In accordance with the PRISMA 2020 protocol, a search was performed in four databases: PubMed (including Medline), Web of Science, eLibrary.Ru и Google Scholar. The search resulted in 526 publications from databases. After the identification and screening phases, eight articles were included in the qualitative analysis. Results. Studies presented in publications show that children with frequent respiratory infections have a deterioration of oral hygiene, impairment of the properties of the mouth fluid, increased activity of caries of temporary and permanent teeth. The results published in three articles show that the presence of early childhood caries increased the frequency of episodes of respiratory infection in children. However, one study did not reveal a significant association between caries, dental plaque and the number of episodes of acute respiratory viral infections in children. Conclusion.In the last 10 years, a small number of articles have been published on dental problems of children with recurrent respiratory infections. There is no information on the condition of periodontal tissue and mucosa of the mouth in this category of children. The association between tooth decay and children’s susceptibility to respiratory infections remains unclear.