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- Title
Determinants of preventive oral health behaviour among senior dental students in Nigeria.
- Authors
Folayan, Morenike O.; Khami, Mohammad R.; Folaranmi, Nkiru; Popoola, Bamidele O.; Sofola, Oyinkan O.; Ligali, Taofeek O.; Esan, Ayodeji O.; Orenuga, Omolola O.
- Abstract
Background: To study the association between oral health behaviour of senior dental students in Nigeria and their gender, age, knowledge of preventive care, and attitudes towards preventive dentistry. Methods: Questionnaires were administered to 179 senior dental students in the six dental schools in Nigeria. The questionnaire obtained information on age, gender, oral self-care, knowledge of preventive dental care and attitudes towards preventive dentistry. Attending a dental clinic for check-up by a dentist or a classmate within the last year was defined as preventive care use. Students who performed oral self-care and attended dental clinic for check-ups were noted to have complied with recommended oral self-care. Chi-square test and binary logistic regression models were used for statistical analyses. Results: More male respondents agreed that the use of fluoride toothpaste was more important than the tooth brushing technique for caries prevention (P < 0.001). While the use of dental floss was very low (7.3%), more females were more likely to report using dental floss (p=0.03). Older students were also more likely to comply with recommended oral self-care (p<0.001). In binary regression models, respondents who were younger (p=0.04) and those with higher knowledge of preventive dental care (p=0.008) were more likely to consume sugary snacks less than once a day. Conclusion: Gender differences in the awareness of the superiority of using fluoridated toothpaste over brushing in caries prevention; and in the use of dental floss were observed. While older students were more likely to comply with recommended oral self-care measures, younger students with good knowledge of preventive dental care were more likely to consume sugary snacks less than once a day.
- Subjects
NIGERIA; CHI-squared test; CONFIDENCE intervals; DENTAL floss; DENTAL students; DENTIFRICES; EPIDEMIOLOGY; HEALTH behavior; ORAL hygiene; PREVENTIVE health services; QUESTIONNAIRES; HEALTH self-care; SEX distribution; LOGISTIC regression analysis; DATA analysis; HEALTH literacy; DATA analysis software; FLUORIDE varnishes; DESCRIPTIVE statistics
- Publication
BMC Oral Health, 2013, Vol 13, Issue 1, p28
- ISSN
1472-6831
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1186/1472-6831-13-28