Dental Neglect
Definition
Failure by a parent or guardian to seek dental care for a child's untreated oral disease (pain, infection, decay) when such care is accessible. Classified as a form of neglect under child maltreatment frameworks in most common-law jurisdictions.
Related terms
- Labial Frenulum
- The fold of mucous membrane attaching the upper (or lower) lip to the anterior gum margin. Tearing of the upper labial frenulum...
- Patterned Oral Trauma
- Oral or perioral injury whose distribution, shape, or multiplicity is inconsistent with random accidental injury and instead suggests a specific object or...
- Perioral Bruising
- Bruising on the lips, philtrum, or surrounding skin. It can indicate forced feeding, a blow to the face, or gagging, and its...
- Rampant Caries
- Rapidly progressing decay affecting multiple teeth simultaneously, often all accessible surfaces, in a young child. When untreated in a child with clear...
- Sentinel Injury
- A minor, often subtle injury in a young child that, on investigation, is the first detected sign of ongoing abuse or is...
Explained in
- Dental Evidence in Child Abuse RecognitionFailure by a parent or guardian to seek dental care for a child's untreated oral disease (pain, infection, decay) when such care is accessible. Classified as a...