Oral Health Behavior Change in Mexican-American Caregivers: A Community-Based Intervention Study.

Nayanjot Rai,Tamanna Tiwari

doi:10.3390/ijerph16183409

Abstract

An oral health prevention intervention was conducted with Mexican-American (MA) caregivers, focused on improving their oral health knowledge, behavior, and self-efficacy. Five in-person intervention sessions were conducted with caregivers, followed by a 15 min skill-building exercise. A goal-setting sheet was provided, and two goals were chosen for fulfilment during the three month intervention period. The data on parental oral health knowledge, behavior, and self-efficacy were collected pre- and post-intervention using a portion of Basic Factors Research Questionnaire (BRFQ). Paired t-tests were conducted to test significant differences in the means of pre- and post-intervention oral health behavior, knowledge, and self-efficacy scores, and pre- and post-intervention individual item scores. Forty six primary caregivers were enrolled. There were significant differences in the means of pre- and post-intervention oral health knowledge (p = 0.003), oral health behavior (p = 0.0005), and self-efficacy scores (p = 0.001). The individual item mean scores showed that there was a significant increase in the number of times caregivers checked for spots (p = 0.016) and a significant decrease in the consumption of sweet or sugary drinks (p = 0.032) post-intervention. Most of the caregivers believed that cavities were caused by germs in the mouth (p = 0.001), sharing utensils with children was bad for their teeth (p < 0.001), and fluoride toothpaste was best for a child’s teeth (p < 0.001). The intervention resulted in improved caregiver oral health knowledge, behavior, and self-efficacy.

Highlights

The role of parental behavior on oral hygiene and dietary control in reducing the prevalence and incidence of caries in young children is highly important [1]
This study was approved by the Colorado Multiple Institutional Review Board (COMIRB) and conducted as an academic community partnership between the research team at the University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine and Servicios De La Raza, which is a Latino community serving organization located in the Denver metro area
Paired t-tests were conducted to see if there was any significant difference in the means of the pre- and post-intervention overall oral health knowledge, oral health behavior, and self-efficacy scores

Summary

Introduction

The role of parental behavior on oral hygiene and dietary control in reducing the prevalence and incidence of caries in young children is highly important [1]. Parental attitudes and perceptions of the importance and value of oral health have been associated with the development of oral hygiene skills, including tooth brushing in children [3,4]. Parental perceptions of self-efficacy in certain behaviors, including brushing a child’s teeth, play an important role in good oral hygiene maintenance [5]. Parents with a stronger sense of efficacy set higher goals, persist longer at tasks, and perform with more effort, compared with parents with low self-efficacy [6]. Finlayson et al (2005) reported that parents with higher self-efficacy, i.e., confidence in their ability to make sure that their child’s teeth were brushed at bedtime, were more likely to have their child brush at bedtime, compared with parents with lower self-efficacy [7]

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion