Development of oral health literacy assessment tool for fifth and sixth grade elementary school students / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to develop and appraise an oral health literacy assessment tool for upper elementary school students. METHODS: Twenty-eight preliminary assessment items were developed on the basis of various types of oral health education literature for children. They contained verbal and functional sections and they were classified into 2 cognitive processes (literal and inferential). The questionnaires were analyzed using the testAn v.1.0 program for identified Cronbach's α, item discrimination, and difficulty through classical test theory. A final evaluation tool was developed and selected by conducting three surveys and 20 items. RESULTS: The final survey was completed by 132 fifth and sixth grade elementary school students in Seoul. The Cronbach's α value, item discrimination, and difficulty were .71, .38, and .75, respectively. The mean score for oral health literacy of children was 14.9 (±3.2, theoretical range: 0-20, 75% correct answers). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that this tool could be relied on to help determine the level of oral health literacy in children and in preparing appropriate oral health education programs for children.

Effect of social support and self-esteem on the oral health behaviors of Korean elderly people / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to determine the oral health behaviors and the relationships between social support, self-esteem, and oral health behaviors. METHODS: The institutions were selected based on the “2016 Elderly Welfare Facilities Status.” A total of 195 people participated in interviews conducted using a 39-item questionnaire. It included information on the following topics: a) sociodemographic and health-related characteristics (11 items), b) oral health behaviors (6), c) social support (12), and d) self-esteem (10). Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, a reliability test, a t-test, an ANOVA, a Pearson's correlation test, and a stepwise multiple regression, conducted using the SPSS 23.0 program. RESULTS: Of the 195 participants, 165 (84.6%) brushed their teeth twice a day; however only 74 (38.0%) participants used oral care products. Although many (64.6%) elderly people visited a dentist at least once a year, only a few (24.6%) visited the dentist for preventive purposes. Oral health behaviors had a positive correlation with self-esteem, significant others' support, and friends'support (.337, .270, and .254, respectively; P<.01). According to the multiple regression analysis, self-esteem, significant others' support, perceived health status, number of existing permanent teeth, friends' support, degree of exercise, gender, and average monthly expenditure had a significant effect on the participants' oral health behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that social support and self-esteem might be major predictors of oral health behaviors. These results suggest that psychosocial factors need to be taken into account in the oral health education provided for elderly people.