When you need to be cared in a special way: A review on dental management of children with special health-care needs.

Children are our future world and their healthy growth and development are critical for the well-being of any society. Children with special health-care needs (SHCN) have compromised oral health conditions as it may be directly or indirectly associated with their disabilities. There is an increased prevalence oQf gingival diseases and dental caries among children with SHCN due to poor oral hygiene, but the importance of dental care for these children has often been overlooked by health-care professionals. The more compromised their general health conditions, the more dental care needs they have. During earlier days, providing basic dental care was the prime concern, but in recent years, the dental profession has emphasized more on complete oral health care to the SHCN children. Pediatric dentistry is a specialized branch that provides primary, comprehensive, preventive, and therapeutic oral health care to children with SHCN. Children with SHCN may experience challenges in many ways, such as intellectual disability, physical disability, medical disability, and genetic disability. The paper addresses the dental management of intellectually challenged patients, including cerebral palsy, mental retardation, epilepsy, and autism, and also physically disabled children showing speech, vision, and hearing impairment. We should consider the unique qualities of each person and the need to ensure maximum health for all, regardless of their disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]