Knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes of dental students towards obesity

Objective: Obesity is a chronic medical condition associated with various oral health problems. The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes of dental students towards obesity

Methods: Second-, third-, and fourth-year dental students completed a self-administered questionnaire. An ethics committee approved the study. Participants were asked questions focused on three areas: [i] knowledge, [ii] perceptions, and [iii] attitudes about obesity. Data analyses were carried out using SPSS version 20

Results: Among the dental students, 78.9% received 0-1 h of formal education about obesity. The mean score of the total time allocated for obesity-related education was 1.31 +/- 0.23 h. Eighty-nine percent of the dental students agreed that obesity is a chronic medical condition, 30% agreed that they would modify their equipment and office furniture to accommodate obese patients, and 46.8% were interested in learning more about obesity in dental school

Conclusions:Obesity-related education should be implemented as a formal component of dental student training. Oral health practitioners should also provide their patients with information about how weight loss is beneficial to both general and oral health

Knowledge and attitude of tobacco use and cessation among dental professionals

Smoking is the one of the most preventable causes of death worldwide. Dental professionals may play an important role in anti-smoking campaigns. The aim of this study was to evaluate current knowledge of and attitudes toward smoking and its cessation among dental professionals. This questionnaire-based study was carried out among general dental practitioners [GDPs] and dental students in Saudi Arabia. The questionnaire was used to collect data on sociodemographic characteristics, knowledge, and attitudes toward tobacco use and cessation. Data were analyzed using SPSS software [version 18.0; IBM] and the Mann-Whitney U-test, with a significance level of p < 0.001.A total of 342 participants [130 GDPs, 212 dental students] with the mean age of 24 [standard deviation, 5] years participated in the study. One-third [33.8%, n = 44] of GDPs and 30.2% [n = 64] of dental students were smokers; small percentages [GDPs, 9.1% [n = 4]; dental students, 7.8% [n = 5]] were heavy smokers. The majority of participants rated both smoking cessation and prevention together as a very important preventive measure. Families were rated as the most important factor responsible for smoking cessation, whereas general practitioners were rated as the most important factor for providing assistance with cessation. More meaningful participation of dental professionals in tobacco cessation is needed, with implications for related curriculum changes

Effect of Tobacco Use On Oral Health- An Overview

Tobacco use is linked with many serious illnesses, such as cancer, cardiopulmonary diseases, as well as with many health problems. Every year, the use of tobacco products causes a heavy toll of deaths and severe human disease worldwide. One of the many health problems linked to tobacco use is its detrimental impact on oral health. Tobacco causes a whole series of oral health problems, ranging from life-threatening (precancerous changes leading to oral cancer) and serious (periodontal disease, teeth decay) to social (bad breath). Tobacco is consumed through the mouth in a variety of forms, varied from smoked tobacco to smokeless tobacco chewing on itself or combined with areca nut. All these forms of tobacco have damaging effects on the oral health. The most significant preventive measure to prevent the oral health problems caused by tobacco use is to stop using tobacco products. The risk of developing oral cancer drops rapidly when a smoker ceases tobacco use. After ten years of not using tobacco, an ex-smoker/user’s risk of oral cancers is about the same as that for someone who has never smoked. To stop using tobacco products is not an easy task. Fortunately, there are a number of therapies available to assist in quitting of tobacco. It is important to remember that, while it will be difficult, ceasing to use tobacco has immediate health benefits, including increased life expectancy and reduced risk of tobacco related diseases and conditions.

Creating synergies for health systems strengthening through partnerships in Pakistan - a case study of the national eye health programme

Blindness and visual impairment are major causes of noncommunicable diseases in Pakistan. Two national population-based blindness surveys conducted in 1988 and 2002-04 demonstrated a reduction in prevalence of blindness from 1.78% to 0.9% with a significant drop in cataract blindness as a result of accelerated nationwide interventions and eye care integration in primary health care. In addition, between 2006 and 2008r 88 facilities were upgraded as a result of the national eye health programme. These measures resulted in a 279% increase in eye outpatient attendances and a 375% increase in eye surgeries performed. Investment in human resources development and policy change contributed significantly to the sustainability of the programme. Key challenges facing the programme include aligning national eye health strategies with health system strengthening informed through health systems research. This gaper attempts to document this extraordinary success

Some basic concepts of management science and their relation to health sector

Health system competes with all other social systems for achieving the goal of human welfare and contentment. Its importance lies in its capability to attain the above mentioned objectives to the maximum degree. Human and material resources are invested as inputs in every system for the purpose of getting maximum output in terms of human welfare. Resources are always limited and have to be utilized on priority basis in a manner that maximum attainment of final objective results. All social systems compete for [investment of resources] as inputs in the system concerned, but establishment of priorities for allocation of resources should be determined on the basis of expected outputs. The systems which give greater outputs in terms of attainment of ultimate objective of human welfare have to be given preference in terms of allocation of resources. In other words resources invested in a system must give output returns equal to the outputs given by other systems if input investments have to be justified. Otherwise less resources should be invested into such system, and the available resources should ordinarily be allocated to the system which can give better returns in terms of human welfare. Some conceptual framework and principles operate for determining priorities for various health programmes within the health system, Investments are determined on the basis of output returns. It is on the basis of the latter that evaluation of the programme is done. Input enumerations do not help in evaluating programme but only show whether the planned investment in the enterprise has been made or not. Health is a system and its working is complex. Health planning depends upon multiple factors besides the need, demand and the resources. A full understanding of the cybernetics of the health system is essential for good planning and successful management. Evaluation of the performance of the health system should be done on the basis of positive changes produced in community health indicators [expressing outputs of the system] and determination of the extent to which better health achieved has contributed to economic productivity and human welfare. The need for systems analysis and for determination of intermediate and ultimate objectives has been pointed out. Spelling out of health indicators and evaluation on the basis of change produced in them is essential for successful management of our health system. Need for operational research in this area and evolvement of new conceptional frameworks have not yet been fully recognized in Pakistan and is possibly putting a constraint on the speed of our progress