Abstract
Background: Knowledge of oral health is a fundamental prerequisite for healthy behavior, allowing individuals to take measures to protect their overall health. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the knowledge of oral health as well as to assess the oral hygiene habits among healthcare and non-healthcare students. Methods: The study was based on a questionnaire and was conducted among 1088 students. Most of the students, 67.6% were non-healthcare students. Data were processed by MannâWhitney or KruskalâWallis one-way ANOVA test. Results: The correct median score and interquartile range were 11 (9â13) for all surveyed students, 11 (9â12) for students in non-healthcare programs and 13 (11â14) for students in healthcare programs. Students did not significantly differ in the knowledge of oral health by gender (p = 0.082) but did differ by age, study program, and year of study (p †0.001). Students whose family members work in the field of dental medicine also showed better oral health knowledge (p †0.001). Conclusion: The results showed good oral health knowledge among tested university students. However, it is important to emphasize that students who showed better knowledge more often used additional aids to maintain oral hygiene; therefore, the obtained data underline the importance of studentsâ further education in order to better understand and maintain oral health.
Highlights
There is much more to oral health than beautiful and healthy teeth
Students whose family members work in dental medicine showed better knowledge of oral health (p †0.001)
It has been shown that a higher level of knowledge is positively correlated with age (>22 years versus â€22 years) [14], and this was confirmed by this study, as we found that at the University of Split, older students (â„23 years) show better knowledge of oral health than younger students (p †0.001)
Summary
There is much more to oral health than beautiful and healthy teeth. It is fundamental to overall health and affects the wellbeing and quality of life of every individual [1]. Poor oral hygiene can lead to the development of dental caries and periodontitis, and is associated with heart disease, cancer, and diabetes [7,8,9,10,11]. Knowledge of oral health is a fundamental prerequisite for healthy behavior, allowing individuals to take measures to protect their overall health. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the knowledge of oral health as well as to assess the oral hygiene habits among healthcare and non-healthcare students. It is important to emphasize that students who showed better knowledge more often used additional aids to maintain oral hygiene; the obtained data underline the importance of studentsâ further education in order to better understand and maintain oral health
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