Are Teachers Working with Visually Impaired Children Prepared to Be Advocates of Oral Health? Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND: Children and adolescents with visual impairment are at increased risk of oral cavity diseases. Pro-health education in their prevention and the role of educators and school counselors are extremely important in this aspect. The aim of the study was to collect information, and compare and analyze the level of pro-health awareness in the field of oral health prevention among teachers working with visually impaired children in Poland and Slovakia. METHODS: The questionnaire survey covered 109 school educators working with visually impaired children. The survey contained general information about participants concerning their knowledge of oral health, basic information about oral hygiene, and children's care needs in this area. The obtained results were statistically analyzed. RESULTS: The level of knowledge about oral health was assessed by the majority of respondents as rather good (60.56%), 28.44% as very good, and 11.01% as middling. Teaching children about oral hygiene at school was declared by a majority of them and over half of the correct answers were given by only 48.42% of the respondents. CONCLUSIONS: It is advisable to intensify the oral cavity diseases prevention training of teachers working with visually impaired children and youth and there is a great need to organize and carry out educational campaigns in schools for them.

Streptococcus sobrinus as a Predominant Oral Bacteria Related to the Occurrence of Dental Caries in Polish Children at 12 Years Old.

Dental caries is listed by the WHO as one of the major non-communicable diseases that need to be prevented and treated. The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence and severity of caries expressed as the Decayed, Missing and Filled Permanent Teeth (DMFT) index in 12-year-old Polish children and to verify bacterial species related to the occurrence of dental caries. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis of DNA isolated from saliva samples was performed to detect 8 cariogenic and periopathogenic bacterial strains. A total of 118 Polish children were enrolled in the study. They had low mean DMFT scores of 1.58 ± 1.98. The prevalence of dental caries in the children tested was low (53.4%), with a tendency to decrease compared to previous oral surveys. Bacterial abundance of other species in the dental caries and caries-free groups did not differ; however, periopathogenic Prevotella pallens, Fusobacterium nucleatum along with cariogenic Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus fermentum were significantly strongly correlated in the caries-active subjects. The prevalence of S. sobrinus was significantly higher in children with dental caries (p = 0.023) and correlated with higher DMFT. It may temporarily play an important role in the initiation of the cariogenic process or in its enhancement due to an ecological imbalance in dental microbiota.

Entamoeba gingivalis - prevalence and correlation with dental caries in children from rural and urban regions of Lublin Province, Eastern Poland.

INTRODUCTION: Entamoeba gingivalis, as the name implies. typically lives around the gumline of the teeth in the tartar and gingival pockets of the oral cavity. Pathogenicity of protozoa in the oral cavity is not completely understood. The occurrence in patients with a good state of the immune system usually does not cause any pathological changes. In the presentede survey, an increased incidence of Entamoeba gingivalis in conjunction with pathological changes in the oral cavity was found. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of Entamoeba gingivalis in children treated in Department of Paediatric Dentistry of the Medical University in Lublin and its correlation with dental caries. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Diagnostic materials in the form of swabs were obtained from 154 children in the age 2-18 years old, treated in the Department of Paediatric Dentistry of the Medical University in Lublin. The main index for epidemiological surveys in oral health - DMFT (decayed, missed, and filled teeth) for permanent teeth and DMFT for deciduous teeth was calculated. RESULTS: The average number of Entamoeba gingivalis in urban children was 12.84. The DMFT number in the deciduous teeth was lower in urban patients (5.0) than from rural patients (5.4). The DMFT number in the permanent teeth was lower in urban patients (3.155) than rural patients (3.98). There was no statistically significant correlation between the DMFT value and the number of Entamoeba gingivalis. CONCLUSIONS: 1) Entamoeba gingivalis occurs in the oral cavity of children. 2) In the presented survey, both DMFT and dmft indexes were high which proves high activity of dental carious. 3) There was no significant statistical correlation observed between dental caries and the presence of Entamoeba gingivalis.

Problems with access to dental treatment for children with epilepsy.

INTRODUCTION: Epilepsy is a common medical disorder and due to a variety of barriers, people with epilepsy may not have access to needed healthcare services, particularly based on their place of residence. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to assess access to dental treatment in children and adolescents with epilepsy in Lublin Voivodeship. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Clinical and questionnaire examinations were performed in 107 children and young people, of both sexes, in the ages between 6 and 18years old from the Lublin macroregion. RESULTS: The majority (77.57%) of respondents regularly visited a general practitioner. Most of the children did not undergo regular dental checkups. Children from the large cities significantly more often went to a dentist compared with examinees from a small town and from rural areas. According to the respondents 46.73% have encountered barriers to dental care of their child.