Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Oral Hygiene in Children of Eastern Nepal

Abstract

Objectives: The objectives of the study were to study knowledge, attitude and practice of oral hygiene in the school children of eastern region of Nepal of age group 6-13 years. Methods and materials: The study was undertaken in the eastern region of Nepal with a sample population of 2,500 children in the age group of 6- 13 years. A questionnaire which was formulated to assess knowledge, attitude and practices of oral hygiene was used. Silness and Loe Plaque index was used to record plaque scores.Results: It was found that 62.3% of the 10- 13 years age group had plaque score of 3 (fair) and 37.7% had a plaque score of 4 (poor) as compared to 59.7% and 40.3% in the 6-9 years age group. The children aged 10-13 years had higher percentage of good oral hygiene compared to 6-9 years children.Conclusion: The present study concludes that in spite of good oral hygiene practices in children, their overall oral hygiene status was found to be poor. Upon investigating about the knowledge of how to maintain good oral hygiene, maximum number of children responded by brushing twice daily. This implicates that knowledge without proper practice is lacking in children of eastern Nepal.