BackgroundIn 2012, nearly 4000 children in Malaysia were referred to hospital pediatric dental services due to dental caries. Recent research has reported the effectiveness of dental home visits in preventing caries development in young children. Dental home visits (DHVs) are described as an ongoing relationship between the dentist and their patients, providing all aspects of a preventive oral health care program in the presence of the parents at home.ObjectiveThe objective of this study is to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of dental home visits and oral health information, in the form of educational leaflets, in preventing new caries development in young children, compared to those receiving only educational leaflets over a period of two years. Cost-effectiveness analysis will be used to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of dental home visits.MethodsThis is a collaborative project with the Oral Health Division of the Ministry of Health Malaysia. The Oral Health Division will provide access to a subsample from the National Oral Health of Preschoolers Survey which was carried out in 2015. The population of interest is children aged 5 and 6 years from kindergartens in the Selangor state of Malaysia. The study adopted a societal perspective for cost-effectiveness analysis and all types of resources that are of value to society will be included in analyzing the costs; such as cost to the patient, cost to the provider or institution, and indirect costs because of loss of productivity.ResultsThe trial has been approved by the International Medical University Malaysia’s Joint Research and Ethics Committee (Project ID: IMU R157-2014 [File III – 2016]). This trial is currently recruiting participants.ConclusionsThe number of young children in Malaysia who have been referred to the hospital children’s dentistry service for severe caries is disturbing. The cost of dental treatment in young children is high due to the severity of the caries which require an aggressive treatment, and the need for general anesthesia or sedation. This study will provide information on the cost and effectiveness of DHVs in caries prevention of young children in Malaysia.Registered Report IdentifierRR1-10.2196/10053

NS. Virtual role-playing simulation as clinic: A model for experiential learning of critical thinking skills.

Background The aim of this cross-sectional study was to evaluate the effect of family functioning on oral health related quality of life (OHRQoL) and dental caries status among 4- to 6-year-old Chinese pre-school children in Malaysia. Methodology This study was approved by the institutional Joint Research and Ethics Committee, International Medical University, Malaysia (number 373/2016); consisted of 180 eligible pre-school children from a private school. Study tools included demographic, clinical oral health data form, the Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale (ECOHIS) and family functioning—12-item general functioning subscale. Written consent was sought prior to data collection. Data were analysed by SPSS v.22.0; descriptive statistics for socio-demographic details, clinical information, HRQoL and FAD scores. The parametric tests included independent sample t test and ANOVA to evaluate the associations between the dependent variable. Binary logistic regression models were applied to assess the impacts on OHRQoL (P value < 0.05). Results A response rate of 80.5% was achieved. Sample means for FAD-GF12 scores ranged < 2, indicating normal family functioning. The ECOHIS scores mean was 0.52 (SD = 0.68). In the children impact section the highest score of impacts 20 was noted followed by family impact section with the score of 12. It was observed that children with dental caries had a significant (P = 0.014) negative impact on OHRQoL (mean 0.72, SD = 0.50) as compared to children with no caries (mean 0.34 SD = 0.39). The bivariate regression analysis after getting adjusted indicated three predictors associated to poor HRQoL: having two or more siblings (OR = 4.73, P = 0.013), relationship (mother) of the respondent to the child (OR = 2.86, P = 0.013) and having dental caries (OR = 8.12, P ≤ 0.001). Conclusion Findings of this study indicates that number of siblings, relationship of the respondent to the child and dental caries status are independently associated with health-related quality of life. However, family functioning does not mediate poor HRQoL in association to dental caries.

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ABSTRAKPendahuluan: Maloklusi adalah salah satu masalah gigi dan mulut yang paling banyak terjadi di Indonesia. Penyimpangan fungsi rongga mulut berupa kebiasaan bernapas melalui mulut dapat menjadi faktor etiologi maloklusi. Bernapas merupakan fungsi rongga mulut yang pertama kali mengalami maturasi, sehingga pengetahuan orang tua anak usia dini penting dalam mencegah timbulnya kebiasaan bernapas melalui mulut pada anak. Tujuan penelitian ini untuk mengetahui tingkat pengetahuan orang tua anak usia dini mengenai kebiasaan bernapas melalui mulut sebagai etiologi maloklusi. Metode: Jenis penelitian adalah deskriptif analitik dengan teknik pengambilan sampel cluster random sampling dan simple random sampling. Penelitian dilakukan terhadap 92 orang tua murid TK Ibunda, TK Islam Raih Impian, dan TK Islam Bukit Indah. Instrumen penelitian menggunakan kuesioner sejumlah 15 butir pertanyaan. Hasil: Sebanyak 5 responden (5,4%) berada di kategori tingkat pengetahuan rendah, 45 responden (48,9%) pada kategori sedang, dan 42 responden (45,7) pada kategori tinggi. Karakteristik responden yaitu jenis kelamin, usia, pendidikan, dan status pekerjaan tidak berpengaruh secara signifikan terhadap tingkat pengetahuan berdasarkan analisis statistik (p > 0,05). Simpulan: Tingkat pengetahuan orang tua anak usia dini mengenai kebiasaan bernapas melalui mulut sebagai etiologi maloklusi termasuk dalam kategori sedang.Kata kunci: Tingkat pengetahuan; orang tua anak usia dini; kebiasaan bernapas melalui mulut; maloklusi ABSTRACTIntroduction: Malocclusion is one of Indonesia’s most frequent dental problems. The abnormality of oral function, such as mouth breathing habits, could be the etiology of malocclusion. Breathing is the first oral function that undergoes maturation; thus, the knowledge of preschool children’s parents is important to prevent children from developing mouth breathing habits. This study aimed to describe the level of knowledge among preschool children’s parents about mouth breathing habits as the etiology of malocclusion. Method: A descriptive analytics study was conducted towards 92 preschool children’s parents of TK Ibunda, TK Islam Raih Impian, and TK Islam Bukit Indah using random cluster sampling and simple random sampling technique. A questionnaire consisting of 15 questions was used. Results: There were 5 parents (5,4%) in low category of knowledge level, 45 parents (48,9%) in moderate category, and 42 parents (45,7) in high category. According to statistical analytics, there is no significant correlation between parents’ characteristics (gender, age, education, and employment status) and their knowledge level (p > 0,05). Conclusion: The level of knowledge about mouth breathing habits as the etiology of malocclusion among preschool children’s parents was moderate.Keywords: Level of knowledge; preschool children’s parents; mouth breathing habits; malocclusion.