Oral hygiene knowledge and source of information among 12 to 16 years' old Karachi school children

The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge of school children about dental diseases, oral hygiene practices, dietary habits and pattern of visit to dental clinic and also to identify the source of information regarding dental health. This cross-sectional study was conducted from January 2012 to June 2012, among students aged between 12 to 16 years studying in schools. Results of the study showed that 100% students believed that caries had negative effect on their dental health and sweets were the most common cause of dental caries. About the question of caries affecting dental health, 76 [25%] acquired knowledge from their dentists while 114 [37.75%] learned from school teacher and rest 113 [37.25%] gained their knowledge from parents? guardians. Moreover, regarding the source of information of soft drink as a hazard to oral health 76 [25%] got the knowledge from their dentists while 110 [36%] of students thought that soft drinks did not affect their dental health and 117 [39%] students said that they had not known the negative effect of soft drinks on their dental health. In the study, 56% responded that caries prompt them to visit dentist whereas only 10.7% visited dentist when they had bleeding gums. School teachers, parents and dentists were the main source of oral health information. The results of the present study showed that majority of the children obtained oral health information from their school teachers. Schools may provide effective settings for oral health screening and oral health educational programs

Knowledge, attitude and practice of hepatitis B among dental and medical students of private medical university, Karachi

The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and behaviour of hepatitis B and infection control of dental and medical undergraduates of private medical university. Karachi. Pakistan. It was the cross sectional survey study. 227 clinical students were approached. A self-structured questionnaire related to KAP of HB was used and data collected through survey questionnaire from each individual. Response rate was 100%. Data were entered and analyzed using Stata software. There were 84 [37%] students from dental college and 143[63%] students from medical section. There were 92[41%] male and 125[59%] female students. The mean level of knowledge, attitude and practice of HB in medical and dental graduates was 58% and 65% respectively. The dental graduates had overall high KAP score than medical undergraduates and the results were statistically significant. Description of the frequency of knowledge, attitude and practice of hepatitis B and infection control has revealed that dental students follow preventive guidelines of transmission during treatment procedure and were more cautious during practice than medical students

Dental caries prevalence and risk factors among school children age12-15 years in Malir, Karachi

A cross sectional study to determine the prevalence of caries and risk factor among school children age!2-15 years was done in Malir Town, Karachi. Total sample size was 399 children from both boys and girls. Self-administered questionnaire and oral examination was carried out. There were 51% boys and 49% girls. The prevalence of dental caries was 66.67%.The mean DMFT score was 1.26. Mean DMFT was significantly higher in girls than boys. The carious lesions were more in girls than boys and were statistically significant. The dental caries increased as the age increased from 12 to 15 year