Abstract
BackgroundOral health is considered a prominent factor that contributes to quality of life. Hormonal changes during pregnancy can influence oral health. Message framing can play an important role in oral health. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of message framing on oral health and dental plaque among pregnant women.MethodsThe study was conducted in 2017 on 108 pregnant women in Izeh county, Iran. Participants were randomly assigned to gain-framed, loss-framed, and control groups. The research instrument included a two part questionnaire containing demographic information and oral health knowledge, attitude, behavioral intention, self-efficacy, practice, and dental plaque index. Gain-and loss-framed messages were sent to the intervention groups via cell phone texts, but the control group did not receive any messages. Participant dental plaque was clinically assessed. Analysis of covariance with follow-up tests were performed using SPSS version, 23.0 with p-value set at 0.01 for significance.ResultsIntervention groups had better oral health (knowledge, atttitude, intention, efficacy, practices and plaque) scores compared to the control group (p < 0.001), but intervention (gain- vs loss-framed) groups did not differ on outcomes.ConclusionText message intervention improved knowledge, attitude, behavioral intention, self-efficacy, practice, and dental plaque among pregnant women. While differences between control and both intervention groups indicated text messaging had an impact on oral health outcomes, message framing (i.e., gain vs loss) had no discernable impact on oral health outcomes.
Highlights
Oral health is considered a prominent factor that contributes to quality of life
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), oral health is a prominent indicator of overall health, well-being and quality of life [1]
No significant between-groups differences were found at pre-intervention on oral health measures
Summary
Oral health is considered a prominent factor that contributes to quality of life. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of message framing on oral health and dental plaque among pregnant women. Oral health is considered as an important factor that determines different aspects of quality of life (physical, mental, and socioeconomic) [1, 2]. Pregnant women use less dental care and ignore oral hygiene as compared to the general population. Pregnant women report several factors hindering oral care including lack of information, insufficient time, and fear of dental treatments [16]. Oral health education may be a critical factor in preventing plaque formation and dental disease [17]. The effectiveness of a health education program depends largely on the use of an appropriate educational theory [18]
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