HUBUNGAN ANTARA KEBIASAAN MEMBERSIHKAN GIGI DENGAN PENGALAMAN NYERI GIGI PADA ANAK DENGAN GANGGUAN SPEKTRUM AUTISME (GSA) DI DAERAH ISTIMEWA YOGYAKARTA

Background: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a lifelong developmental disorder that causes a person have difficulty in communicating and socializing. Individuals with ASD have several repetitive habits, sensitive to certain things, and have narrow interests. The limitations of children with ASD result in the inability of performing behaviors to maintain dental and oral health, for example, the process of cleaning teeth is not optimal which can cause dental and oral health problems and resulting in tooth pain. Objective: The study aimed to examine the association between teeth cleaning habits and the experience of tooth pain in children with ASD in SLB Special Region of Yogyakarta. Methods: The study used an analytic observational study with a cross-sectional study. The subjects of the study were 40 children with ASD who came from SLB Bina Anggita, SLB Citra Mulia Mandiri, SLB Dharma Rena Ring Putra II, SLB Negeri 1 Bantul, SLB Samara Bunda, and SLB Tegar Harapan. Teeth cleaning habits and the experience of tooth pain in children with ASD were measured using a questionnaire which was then analyzed using the Spearman's Test. Result: The results of the Spearman’s Test showed a correlation coefficient of -0.464 (p<0.05), which means that there is a moderately opposite relationship between teeth cleaning habits and the experience of tooth pain. Conclusion: The better teeth cleaning habits, the lower the experience of tooth pain in children with ASD.