Objectives: Dental anxiety is a significant determinant of regular dental visits. The objectives of the study were to determine the prevalence and determinants of dental anxiety among adult patients at the dental center of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital. Subjects and Methods: A total of 390 respondents aged 16-89-year-old were interviewed for the study. The Participants were selected through a predetermined sequence of systematic random sampling and completed a questionnaire based on the Coral Dental Anxiety Scale (CDAS). Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 20.0 (SPSS version 20, IBM Statistics, New York, USA) and means compared using Student's t-test and analysis of variance. Results: The prevalence of dental anxiety (CDAS ≥ 13) in the study population was 8.7% (n = 34), and the overall mean and standard deviation of CDAS was 7.81 ± 2.50. The total mean dental anxiety score and mean for each item were significantly higher in females than in males (t = 6.17 P = 0.016). There was a significant decrease in mean CDAS score with age (F = 14.51, P = 0.005). Mean CDAS score was significantly higher in respondents without formal education than those with formal education (t = 7.41, P = 0.005). The mean CDAS scores for root canal therapy were 9. 66 ± 3.16; extraction, 8.84 ± 2.33; filling, 6.45 ± 2.81; and scaling, 5.12 ± 1.87. The highest and lowest means were not significantly different (t = 2.73, P = 0.07). Conclusion: The prevalence of dental anxiety in the study sample was low. Whereas dental anxiety was significantly associated with age, gender, and educational status, there was no significant relationship between dental anxiety and type of dental treatment.
Background:The maintenance of optimum oral health is dependent on the efficacy of oral self-care. The objective of the present study was to evaluate oral self-care practices and knowledge among non-medical students at the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State Nigeria.Materials and Methods:The cross-sectional survey was conducted among undergraduate students at the University of Port Harcourt Nigeria, in January, 2014. Self-administered questionnaire elicited information on demography, frequency of tooth brushing, type of tooth brush, use of dental floss and previous visit to the dentist.Results:A total of 360 young adults, 188 males and 172 females, aged 18-33 years participated in the study. Brushing habits of the study population was at least once a day (90%). Approximately half (52.5 %) of the samples used medium-sized bristles and about 28.8% of the students replaced their toothbrush every 3 months. Regarding oral hygiene aids, few students, 5.8% and 4.2% used dental floss and mouthwash, respectively, as oral cleaning aid. Most of the students (71.6%) had never visited the dentist, 18.1% visited due to dental pain and 8.1% for extraction. Regarding knowledge on oral hygiene practice, approximately 60% of students knew that we have to brush our teeth twice daily, 31% knew we need to visit the dentist twice a year and only 18% knew what was dental floss.Conclusion:Oral hygiene practices among the students were poor. Therefore, oral health education and promotion is required to improve oral hygiene practices and health among young adults and the general population.
Objectives:The study was designed to determine the prevalence of dental caries and partial edentulism, in addition to assessing the oral hygiene status and restorative care among adults in a community-based outreach program in Port Harcourt.Materials and Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted among adults who participated in oral health screening program, which took place in Alakahia and Obigbo rural communities in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria. After a brief oral health education, clinical examination was conducted and the diagnosis of caries was made based on the guidelines laid down by World Health Organization. Prevalence of caries was measured using decayed missing and filled teeth (DMFT) index, and oral hygiene status was assessed using the OHI-S. The restorative index [(F/F + D) ×100] was also calculated and the sociodemographic factors of the subjects were noted. Chi-square test, independent t-test and descriptive statistic were employed for analysis.Results:One fifty-five females (53.8%) and 133 males (46.2%) attended the events and their mean age was 29.3 ± 10.5 years. About one-third of the participants (35.1%) presented with dental caries. The mean DMFT for the whole group was 0.67 ± 2.0. The restorative index for the subjects was 26.8%. The oral hygiene status of most of the participants was fair. This was significantly better in females than in males (P = 0.002).Conclusion:Although about one-third of the participants had dental caries, only a quarter of them had received restorative care. Most of the respondents had fair and poor oral hygiene, this suggests the need to educate and motivate the community toward adopting and maintaining positive oral health attitudes and practices.
Objectives:The objective of the following study is to determine the burden of oral disease and oral hygiene practices among urban population in Port Harcourt, Rivers State Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Individuals who attended the free screening exercise as part of activities to mark 2013 World Oral Health Day were recruited for this study. Data were collected through self and interviewer-administered questionnaire and clinical oral examination. Results: One hundred and sixty subjects between the ages of 5 and 78 years participated in the study. Females (59.4%) were significantly (P = 0.005) more than males (40.6%). Most of the participants (57.5%) were between 16 and 30 years. Only 33% of the screened population had visited a dentist and most of the previous visits (91%) were to the Dental Center of University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital. All the participants cleaned their teeth using toothpaste and toothbrush with 83.4% doing it once a daily. The prevalence of gingival bleeding and dental caries was 91.9% and 23.1%, respectively. Conclusion: The burden of oral disease and unmet dental treatment needs among the study population were high. Majority of the participants cleaned their teeth once daily; this falls short below the internationally recommended twice daily. There is a need to advocate for the creation of an enabling environment for oral health through government policies that will be focused on preventive and restorative care.
There is an increased interest in looking at age and gender differences in health and disease, including oral health.The objective of this study was to determine the influence of age and gender on oral health knowledge, attitude and practice of pensioners in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria. The research was analytic descriptive survey in design. A total of 543 old people were selected by systematic random sampling. Data was collected with a self-developed Oral Health Assessment Questionnaire (OHAQ) designed in four sections (A-D) and analyzed using SPSS version 20 (IBM SPSS Armonk, New York). Relationship between variables was established using independent t-test and ANOVA, and significance determined at 0.05 alpha level. A total of 543 pensioners were involved in the study, this consisted of 295 (54.3%) were males and 248 (45.7%) females. The age groups 60-64 years, 65-69 years and ≥70 years constituted 234 (43.1%), 206 (37.9%) and 103 (19.0%) of the respondents respectively. Thirty-seven percent, 34% and 41% of the respondents had good oral knowledge, positive attitude and good behavior respectively. The oral health knowledge, attitude, and behavior scores for females were 14.8, 30.2 and 10.8 respectively. These were significantly higher in females than in males. Oral health knowledge and behavior decreased significantly with increase in age, while there was a non-significant decrease of oral health attitude with increasing age. This study found that oral health knowledge, attitude and practice of the pensioners differ significantly with gender, as well as a significant decrease in oral health knowledge and practice with increasing age. The study recommends that promotion of oral health among the pensioners.
Objectives: Cigarette smoking is recognized as the most important environmental risk factor in periodontitis and also an important risk factor for oral cancer. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of cigarette smoking and aware ness of oral health problems of tobacco use among university students in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Materials and methods:The study population consisted of 360 young adults: 188 (52.2%) males and 172 (47.8%) females. Participants answered questions regarding demography, smoking behavior, attitude and on oral effect of smoking. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS (New York, USA) statistics version 20.0 and test of significance done using Chi-square. Results:The overall prevalence of smoking was 78 (21.7%): 52 (27.7%) in males and 26 (15.1%) in females. Males significantly smoked more than females (p = 0.002). Fiftyone (65.4%) of the current smokers commenced smoking in secondary school, 39 (50%) had smoked for 6 to 10 years, 54 (69.2%) consumed one to five sticks of cigarettes per day and among those who quitted smoking, 39 (52%) stopped smoking for health reasons. While 262 (72.8%) were ignorant that smoking was harmful to oral health, 223 (61.9%) and 278 (77.2%) respectively could not identify smoking as a risk factor for oral cancers and gum disease. Conclusion:Though majority of the students were aware of the negative impact of smoking on general health, most of them were ignorant of the effect on oral health. Therefore, shared risk approach should be employed to inform, guide and educate the public on the effects of tobacco and in the campaign against its use.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.