Knowledge, attitudes and behavior of children in relation to oral health

Abstract

Background/Aim. Health education plays a very important role in maintaining health of individuals. Good oral health, as a part of general health, is largely dependent on the level of knowledge, attitudes and habits that children already have. The aim of this study is to examine the level of knowledge and habits in children regarding oral hygiene, diet and bad habits. Methods. The study included 506 school children aged 12 and 15 years in three towns (Foča, Čajniče, Kalinovik, Bosnia and Herzegovina). The survey was conducted in order to assess knowledge, attitudes and habits that children have in relation to their own oral health. Results. Most respondents stated that they began to brush their teeth at the age of 4, while a smaller number linked beginning of tooth brushing to the start of school. The parents more often help the boys during tooth brushing. A total of 54.9% of children brush their teeth after every meal, while 40.1% of them brush teeth only once during the day. Twelve year olds brush their teeth more often, especially after a meal. A total of 92.5% of children had never used fluoride tablets nor are the tablets recommended to them by anyone. More than half of the children (61.7%) visited the dentist for the first time before starting school that is on the regular examination that is performed upon enrollment to school. A pain as a reason for dental visits was present in 43.9%, while the preventive check in only 31.4% of the children. Conclusion. Children included in this study, particularly 15-year-olds, are quite well informed about teeth brushing frequency and proper selection of tools for hygiene maintenance, but this knowledge is not applied. Girls are more responsible for their own health, and come regularly to the preventive dental checkups.

Uvod/Cilj. Zdravstveno vaspitanje ima izuzetno važnu ulogu u očuvanju zdravlja pojedinca. Dobro oralno zdravlje, kao deo opšteg zdravlja, umnogome zavisi od stepena informisanosti, stavova kao i navika koje djeca već imaju. Cilj rada bio je da se ispita stepen informisanosti i navike djece prema oralnoj higijeni, način ishrane i loše navike. Metode. U istraživanje je bilo uključeno 506 školske djece uzrasta od 12 i 15 godina iz tri grada (Foéa, Čajniče, Kalinovik). Za ocjenu informisanosti, kao i stavova i navika koje djeca imaju prema sopstvenom oralnom zdravlju, sprovedena je anketa. Rezultati. Većina ispitanika je navela da je počela da pere zube sa navršene četiri godine, dok manji broj svoj početak pranja zuba vezuje za polazak u školu. Roditelji češće pomažu dječacima prilikom pranja zuba. Ukupno 54,9% djece pere zube nakon svakog jela, dok 40,1% djece samo jednom u toku dana pere zube. Dvanaestogodišnjaci češće peru zube i to nakon obroka. Ukupno 92,5% djece nije nikada upotrebljavalo fluor tablete, niti im ih je neko preporučivao. Veći broj djece (61,7%) prvi put je posjetilo stomatologa pred polazak u školu, tj. na redovnom sistematskom pregledu koji se obavlja pri upisu u školu. Bol kao razlog posjete stomatologu bila je zastupljena kod 43,9%, dok preventivna kontrola samo kod 31,4% djece. Zaključak. Djeca uključena u ovo ispitivanje, a posebno petnaestogodišnjaci, dosta su dobro informisana o redovnosti održavanja oralne higijene i pravilnom izboru pribora, ali to znanje ne primjenjuju. Djevojčice su odgovornije prema sopstvenom zdravlju jer dolaze redovnije na preventivne stomatološke preglede.