NORMATIVE ORAL HEALTH STATUS AND BEHAVIOUR OF 3-5 YEARS OLDS IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SCHOOLS, IBADAN

Abstract

NORMATIVE ORAL HEALTH STATUS AND BEHAVIOUR OF 3-5 YEAR OLDS IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SCHOOLS, IBADAN

Objective:

To describe the oral health status and behavior of children aged 3-5years in Ibadan.

Methods

This was a cross sectional study involving 430 children aged 3-5 years attending 15 public and 11 private schools. Socio-demographic and oral health behavior data were collected from caregivers/parents with a self-administered semi structured questionnaire. Each child was examined for dental caries, oral hygiene status, gingivitis, trauma, and malocclusion using a modified WHO oral assessment form. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used for data analysis on SPSS 20.0 at p<0.05.

Result

The mean age of the children was 4.3±0.8 years. Malocclusion was the commonest (59.3%) oral condition. Majority (64.2%) of them brush once a day, 92.1% use toothbrush and toothpaste with more than half being supervised. Children attending public schools had a poorer oral hygiene (p< 0.001). The mean dmft and OHS were 0.25±0.9 (Median= 2.0, IQR= 3.0) and 1.08±0.8 respectively. Children attending private schools are 0.19 times (p<0.001, CI-0.09-0.42) more likely to be supervised by an adult while brushing.

Conclusion                                                                             

The commonest oral condition in the children was malocclusion, children attending public schools had poorer oral hygiene as well as oral hygiene practices.