The importance of oral hygiene in children during school time

Objectives: The objective of this study is to assess the level of awareness of a group of children of the same school (average age 11.15 years) on their knowledge of oral hygiene, before and after a lesson on oral health. We also propose to assess how much a lesson can influence the habits of the subjects under examination. Methods: through a questionnaire 41 questions were asked relating to: home oral hygiene, eating habits, spoiled habits and degree of satisfaction of one’s smile. An oral hygiene lesson was then carried out using a mouth macromodel. The same questions were re-administered after two months to compare results. Results: after the lesson the percentage of children scared by the dentist dropped from 11.7% to 3.7%, as it did for hose who declare gum bleeding during brushing (from 74.6% to 22%). The percentage of children who brush their teeth for more than two minutes increased from 30% to 47.8%. Conclusions: an improvement in awareness of the importance of maintaining a correct level of oral hygiene was observed, which is why it is essential to train school-age children to maintain their oral health properly. ©️ 2020, Associazione Culturale Pediatri. All rights reserved.