Javeria Afzal, Mariyam Sarfaraz, Mudassar Mushtaq Jawad Abbasi.
Educational intervention to improve knowledge and practices of pro¬dental hygiene among children in tehsil Sadiqabad, district Rahim Yar Khan-A Quasi experimental study.
Pak J Public Health Jan ;6(1):16-21.

Background: Dental caries is the most common infectious disease in the young population. Pain, discomfort, lack of appetite, laziness and malocclusion are some consequences of untreated dental caries. Beside these, long-term health outcomes such as psychological, social and emotional adverse effects may occur that will affect the child's overall well-being. Adequate knowledge and understanding the value of maintaining healthy dental practices is necessary for people of all age groups, especially for childrenaged 10 to 13years. Methods: Quasi experimental design was used to conduct this study. Sample size was calculated to be 200, from which (100 were included in experimental and control group). The data were collected from two randomly selected schoolsof Tehsil Sadiq Abad, District Rahim Yar Khan. Structured questionnaire was used to assess the knowledge and practices of Oro-dental hygiene among students aged 10-13 years. Based on the results of the student's knowledge, a dental health education intervention was developed for t hat specific age group. This intervention was then demonstrated to the experimental group of students while only the written information was shared with the control group. After t he intervention, knowledgeof t hest udy participants was tested again. Results: The current study revealed that knowledge and practices regarding Oro-dental hygiene were not good among the respondentsof both groups. The knowledge and practices were improved significantly in the experiment group as compared to the control group after this short educational intervention. In the current study, in experiment group only 29% of the respondents were aware of the consequences of not maintaining oral hygiene indicating a lack of knowledge and ignorance while afterthe intervention their knowledge regarding importance of oral hygiene maintenance improved by upto 90%. Conclusion: The school is an important platform which can be utilized for oral health promotion and prevention of dental disease. It wasconcluded thatthere should be communication (in the form of presentations, demonstrations) in each intervention in order to gain the maximum response to enhance the knowledge and improve the behavior and practicesof children. Key Words: Respondents, oro-dental hygiene, knowledge, practices, intervention.

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