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VOLUME 11 , ISSUE 2 ( July-Dec, 2020 ) > List of Articles

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Awareness of Oral Hygiene among Dental College Students in Namakkal, Tamil Nadu, India: A Cross-sectional Analysis

Surya Thangam

Citation Information : Thangam S. Awareness of Oral Hygiene among Dental College Students in Namakkal, Tamil Nadu, India: A Cross-sectional Analysis. J Health Sci Res 2020; 11 (2):53-57.

DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10042-1096

License: CC BY-NC 4.0

Published Online: 06-04-2021

Copyright Statement:  Copyright © 2020; The Author(s).


Abstract

Aim and objective: To assess the influence of educational level and gender on oral hygiene knowledge, attitude, and behavior among undergraduate dental students. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out, including 357 students and interns of a dental college in Namakkal, Tamil Nadu, India. A self-administered anonymous and close-ended questionnaire based on the Hiroshima University–Dental Behavior Inventory was designed and administered voluntarily to students and interns in October 2019 to survey their oral hygiene knowledge and attitude. The questionnaire consisted of 20 questions. The study group consisted of 1st-year students (98), 2nd-year students (91), 3rd-year students (62), 4th-year students (47), and 59 interns. Collected data were coded and analyzed using SPSS version 21.0. Participants’ responses were assessed according to their educational level and gender using the Chi-square test, and the significance level was set at p ≤ 0.05. Results: In this study, the response rate was 100%. Responses to some of the questions showed significant variability. The oral health behavior of participants varies not only with their gender but also with their educational level, i.e., the amount of clinical exposure and experience. Conclusion: We conclude that knowledge and information play a crucial role in modifying one's psychology, despite gender-based variation in behavior. Therefore, we recommend that the government includes chapters on some basic knowledge related to oral health in the school syllabus, such as basic science subjects, or a compulsory dental awareness program in the school curriculum.


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