Visually impaired children could maintain an acceptable level of oral hygiene when taught using special customised methods.

Aim To assess the oral hygiene status, knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) in visually impaired children before and after imparting 3 different modes of oral health education. Methodology and results The present study was a nonrandomized interventional study conducted among visually impaired school children. Ninety visually impaired children aged 12–15 years were selected by lottery method and divided into 3 groups (30 children each). Group 1: ATP (audio, tactile, performance technique), Group 2: Braille, and Group 3: ATP + Braille. Twenty‐item verbal questionnaire was developed to record their knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) regarding oral hygiene before and after imparting oral health education. The oral hygiene status was recorded and compared using plaque and gingival index after 21‐day, 1‐, 6‐, and 9‐month interval. ANOVA, Tukey's post hoc, repeated measures ANOVA, and McNemar test were used. Group 3 showed highest percentage of reduction in plaque (55%) and gingival (52%) scores when compared with Group 1 and Group 2. Conclusion The combination of ATP (audio, tactile, and performance technique) and Braille is an effective way to improve oral hygiene status in visually impaired children. The KAP among these children also improved significantly after imparting oral health education.

We compared the effectiveness of two media (text messages and pamphlets) in imparting health education to mothers of preschool children. Mothers and their children were randomized into two groups. There were 72 mothers and their children in the pamphlet group and 71 in the text message group. The mothers were given health education by one of the two modes for four weeks. Knowledge, attitude and practices of the mothers were assessed by a questionnaire pre- and post-intervention. Visible plaque scores of their children were also recorded pre- and post-intervention. There were significant improvements in knowledge (P < 0.001), attitude (P < 0.001) and practices (P < 0.001) in both groups. There was also a significant reduction in visible plaque scores (P < 0.001) in both groups. Text messaging was more effective than pamphlets in improving knowledge, attitude and practices of mothers, but the comparative reduction in plaque score between groups was not significant. Text messaging appears to be an effective means of imparting oral health education.

Background:Health education is a process of transmission of knowledge and skills necessary for improvement in quality of life. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the oral hygiene related knowledge and plaque scores of 12-year-old school children in Belgaum city before and after health education.Methods:Three schools of Belgaum city were randomly selected and assigned into one of three health educational groups – group I (audiovisual aids), group II (chalk and blackboard) and group III (no health education). Oral health related knowledge and plaque scores were assessed in all the groups before and after health education.Results:The mean knowledge score before intervention in group I was 7.94, in group II was 7.86 and in group III was 7.74 (P=0.86). After intervention, the mean knowledge score was 14.42 in group I, 12.7 in group II and 9.58 in group III (P<0.001). Plaque scores in the three groups were similar and statistically nonsignificant at baseline. After the oral health education, the mean plaque scores were 0.627 in group I, 0.8826 in group II and 1.0156 in group III. Within the group comparisons revealed a statistically improved oral hygiene with decreased plaque scores in all the three groups.Conclusion:Health education by audiovisual aids could be an effective preventive measure against plaque-related oral diseases.

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) dentist occupational hazards prevalence disability risk factors psychosocial risk prevention

Introduction: Medical emergencies can occur frequently in dental setting. Effective management of an emergency situation in the dental office is ultimately the dentist’s responsibility. The lack of training and inability to cope with medical emergencies can lead to tragic consequences and sometimes legal action. For this reason, all health professionals including dentists must be well prepared to attend to medical emergencies. Providing basic life support [BLS] is dentist’s most important contribution until definitive treatment for a medical emergency can be given. Hence the study is aimed to assess the dental graduates (Interns) knowledge, skills and competency regarding dentistry-medical emergency interface. Method: Data were collected from 105 Interns of two dental colleges of Belgaum City using a structured questionnaire consisting of 7 item questionnaire (6 closed and 1 open ended). Results: Overall in all the years, syncope / faint was seen by 40.9% of the respondents, 37.1% with hypoglycemic attacks, allergic reactions by 17.1%, epileptic attacks by 7.6%, asthmatic attacks by 4.5% and angina 0.9%. The frequencies of the emergencies encountered were once or even more. Knowledge of the presence of drugs and equipments in the emergency drug kit and the confidence in regard to use them was low. Medical emergencies training were undertaken by 42% respondents, but in varying degrees. There was a desire for further medical emergencies training by majority of respondents. Conclusion: The study showed that syncope is the commonest medical emergency event. Dental graduates had a superficial knowledge of medical emergencies, drugs and equipments. Emphasis is placed on the need for more medical emergencies training to be offered, to increase knowledge and confidence of dental graduates (Interns) in the management of medical emergencies. Key words:Medical emergencies, dental graduates, basic life support, emergency drugs.

The findings of this study show that dental trauma has a moderately high prevalence among Indian primary school children. Community, especially parents and school teachers, should be educated about prevention and early management of dental trauma in children.

This study aimed at determining the effect of indigenously prepared neem and mango chewing stick mouthwashes on plaque and gingival indices. A sample of 105 children aged 12-15 years was randomized into three groups, namely neem, mango, and chlorhexidine mouthwash groups. All the children were examined at baseline and gingival and plaque indices were recorded. Baseline scores for plaque and gingivitis were fair and moderate, respectively, in all the three groups and there existed no statistically significant difference among them. Ten millilitres each of herbal and chlorhexidine mouthwashes (0.2%) were administered according to the group allocation twice daily for 21 days. Indices were reassessed at 21 days (immediately after intervention) and at 1 month, 2 months, and 3 months after discontinuing the mouthwashes. Statistically significant reduction (P < 0.001) in plaque index was found in all the three mouthwash groups at 21 days and at 1 month from discontinuing the mouthwash. Chlorhexidine additionally showed statistically significant reduction in plaque index at 2 months from discontinuing the mouthwash. Statistically significant reduction (P < 0.001) in gingival index was found in all the three mouthwash groups at 21 days (immediately after discontinuing the mouthwash) and at 1 and 2 months from discontinuing the mouthwash. To conclude, all the three mouthwashes were effective antiplaque and antigingivitis agents. Chlorhexidine and neem possess equivalent efficacy in reducing plaque, while chlorhexidine has superior antigingivitis properties.