Knowledge, Attitude, Training and Practices of Pediatricians in Relation to The Prevention of Oral Diseases in the Thrace Region

Abstract

Oral health is an integral part of general health. Pediatricians are more likely to see babies and children earlier than dentists. Pediatricians are the right people to advise families on the prevention and management of oral diseases in children. The aim of this study was to determine the knowledge, attitudes and practices related to the prevention of oral diseases among pediatricians working in the Thrace region of Turkey. A cross-sectional questionnaire was conducted to 69 pediatricians working in the Thrace region of Turkey. Pediatricians were asked questions that included socio-demographic information and evaluated their knowledge, attitude and practices of oral and dental health. Pearson’s chi-square test was used to determine the relationship between the demographic data and answers to the questionnaire. Most of the pediatricians stated that pediatricians play an important role in prevention of dental caries and oral health, they need to examine the oral cavity and teeth for this, but they need more information about preventive oral health practices. 43.5% of the pediatricians knew that the first dentist visit should be done as soon as the first primary tooth eruption, and 45.1% knew that oral tooth cleaning should start after the first primary tooth eruption, 13% of the pediatricians knew that thefirst sign of tooth decay was the white spots on tooth surface. Informing pediatricians about the prevention of dental caries is important for preventive dentistry.