Oral health status and practices of 6- to 7-year-old children in Amman, Jordan: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Dental caries affects the majority of children in Jordan, with some evidence of its prevalence steadily increasing. Previous studies have shown that families struggle to establish good oral health practices. The aim of this study was to evaluate the current oral health status and practices of 6- to7-year-old children in Amman, Jordan.r METHODS: A cross-sectional cohort study. The sample consisted of 6- to 7-year-old children attending six randomly selected schools in Amman, Jordan. Measures collected were: I) Caries experience (d3mft/D3MFT), II) Oral hygiene, measured using the Simplified Oral Hygiene Index, III) Dietary, toothbrushing, and dental attendance practices, measured using diaries and parental questionnaires, IV) Participants' basic characteristics: age, education and employment. Data were analysed using SPSS20. RESULTS: In total, 942 children were recruited. Four hundred and fifty-seven were boys, 485 were girls. Their average age was 6.5 years. Eighty-nine percent had decay in their primary teeth. Mean d3mft was 5.1(1 (range = 0-12, SD = 2.9). Only 8% of carious teeth were restored. Mean DMFT score was 0.3 (range = 0-4, SD = 0.8). Mean debris score was 1.07 (range = 0-3, SD = 0.37). Children indicated that they brush their teeth 1.6 times a day (range = 0-3, SD = 0.6). The majority (81%) were unsupervised. Sixty-seven percent of parents did not know the appropriate fluoride toothpaste concentration. Children were having 1.5 sugary snacks in-between their meals (Range = 1-6, SD = 1.1). They scored a mean of 2.5 (Range = 0-5.87, SD = 1.7) in sweetened drinks intake (recommended ≤ 1) and 2.8 (Range = 0-18.57, SD = 1.5) in non-core food intake (recommended ≤ 2) on a dietary questionnaire. Most parents (84%) indicated that their child attends the dentist only when in pain, and 18% indicated that their child is extremely afraid of dentists. Only 32% and 18% were familiar with fluoride varnish and fissure sealants, respectively. Regression analysis revealed that debris score and dental attendance were reliable predictors of caries experience. CONCLUSIONS: Six- to seven-year-old children in Amman, Jordan have a high caries experience. Most show signs of poor oral hygiene, excessive intake of cariogenic foods, and symptomatic dental attendance. Their parents lack knowledge on fluoride varnish and fissure sealants. There is a need for oral health promotion tailored to this cohort's need.

A Video-Game-Based Oral Health Intervention in Primary Schools-A Randomised Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Poor oral health practices and high levels of dental caries have been reported among children in the developing world. Video games have been successful in promoting oral health in children. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of an oral-health-education video game on children's dietary knowledge and dietary and toothbrushing practices; Methods: Two Schools in Amman, Jordan were randomly selected and assigned to either intervention or control. Six- to eight-year old children took part. The intervention group played the oral-health-education video game; the control group received no intervention. The groups were compared in terms of changes in: child dietary knowledge, dietary and toothbrushing practices, plaque scores, and parental familiarity with preventive treatments. Data were submitted to statistical analysis with the significance level set at p ≤ 0.05. RESULTS: Two hundred and seventy-eight children took part. Most (92%) had carious teeth. At baseline, children reported having more than one sugary snack a day and only 33% were brushing twice a day. Most parents were unaware of fluoride varnish (66%) or fissure sealants (81%). At follow-up, children in the intervention group had significantly better dietary knowledge, and parents in both groups became more familiar with fluoride varnish. There were no significant changes in children's plaque scores, toothbrushing and dietary practices, or parental familiarity with fissure sealants in either group. CONCLUSIONS: Using an oral-health-education video game improved children's dietary knowledge. However, future efforts should target children together with parents, and need to be supplemented by wider oral-health-promotion.

YouTube as a source for parents' education on early childhood caries.

BACKGROUND: Patients can and do search the Internet for information on various health-related topics. YouTube™ is one popular website they may consult. AIM: To examine the quality of information offered by YouTube™ for patients seeking information on early childhood caries (ECC). DESIGN: YouTube™ was searched for videos on ECC. The usefulness of selected videos in providing adequate information about ECC was evaluated using a 13-point usefulness score. The guidelines of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry were used for benchmarking. RESULTS: Most videos were uploaded by healthcare professionals (60%, n = 18). Videos had generally low usefulness scores (mean: 5.1 ± 2.9; range: 1-11). An average YouTube™ video on ECC was viewed two times/day (range: 0.07-34.4 views/day). Less useful videos ranked early on the viewing list, and viewer's interactions with videos were not affected significantly by their usefulness. CONCLUSION: YouTube™ should not be used as a trusted site for educating patients on ECC.

Prevalence of traumatic dental injuries and associated factors among preschool children in Amman, Jordan.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Dental trauma is a major public health problem. However, baseline data regarding traumatic injuries to primary teeth in Jordan are lacking. The study aimed at evaluating the prevalence of traumatic dental injuries to primary anterior teeth among preschool children in Amman (Jordan), investigating the relationship between dental trauma and associated factors, and assessing the treatment provided and treatment need. MATERIALS AND METHODS: After obtaining ethical approval and parental consent, a cross-sectional population-based study examined a total of 1198 children attending 39 preschools randomly selected from different areas of Amman. Chi-square test and stepwise logistic regression modeling were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The prevalence of traumatic dental injuries was 26.4%. The upper incisors were more likely to sustain dental trauma (91.7%). No statistically significant association was established between dental trauma and any of the socio-demographic variables. The most common type of dental trauma was enamel fracture (43.1%) followed by pulp injury (39.7%). The odds ratio suggested that the risk of dental trauma was 1.89 times greater if the overjet was >3 mm, 1.93 times greater if the child had an anterior open bite, and 2.56 times greater if the child had inadequate lip coverage. Only 25.3% of children diagnosed with a TDI visited a dentist following their trauma. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of dental trauma among preschool children in Amman (Jordan) was high; therefore, it is highly recommended to plan campaigns targeting parents, children, and medical/dental care providers that stress the importance of preventing dental trauma and treating it promptly.

The Arabic version of the modified dental anxiety scale. Psychometrics and normative data for 15-16 year olds.

OBJECTIVE: To prepare an Arabic version of the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) and provide normative information including evidence to support the validity of the measure. METHODS: The MDAS was translated into Arabic and back-translated into English. Data collection took place in Amman, Jordan from March 2009 to March 2010. One thousand and six hundred two 10th grade students took part in the study (15-16 years of age) sampled from 32 schools. Questionnaire consisted not only of the MDAS, but also (i) a single global question on dental anxiety to test concurrent validity, (ii) a question on helplessness in the dental surgery to test construct validity and (iii) demographic profile. RESULTS: The level of missing data was minimal for the translated scale. The internal consistency for this sample using the Arabic MDAS was 0.87 (95% confidence interval was 0.86-0.88). The measure was a one-dimensional scale. The proportion of the sample that was highly dentally anxious was 22% (>/= 19 cut-off score). Expected differences between gender and self-reported dental attendance were observed. There were clear significant relationships as predicted between the Arabic MDAS and (i) a single item measure of dental anxiety and (ii) feeling helpless in the dental chair on a previous occasion. CONCLUSION: The Arabic version of the MDAS can be employed for brief assessment of dental anxiety.