چکیده
Background: A high proportion of Nigerian children with caries are left untreated resulting in complications. Paediatricians often provide primary care and maybe useful in improving oral health care.
Aim: To assess the oral health knowledge on dental caries and professional experience of a sample of Nigerian paediatricians.
Methods: A self-administered questionnaire-based cross sectional survey of paediatricians attending the annual national conference of the Paediatric Association of Nigeria in January 2011 at Abuja, Nigeria was conducted. The questionnaire assessed knowledge on early childhood caries, oral health services provided and attitude to preventive dental services. Data analysis was done using EPI-info (version 3.5) statistical software.
Results: Of the 200 questionnaires administered, 145 were properly completed and returned (response rate of 72.5%). The respondents’ gender was almost evenly distributed. Their age range was 26-77 years (mean 41.8±7.4 years). A total of 83 (57.2%) respondents reported receiving oral health education prior to this study. Over 90% of the respondents had received various dental complaints from their patients. Very few (26.2%) performed oral screening routinely although 94.2% believed that oral screening should be routinely carried out. Only 28.9% of the respondents felt adequately informed about oral health though 86.6% were willing to receive training on oral health care. Most of the respondents agreed that dental assessments and counselling should be included in routine paediatric clinical examination.
Conclusion: Paediatricians could be useful in increasing access to oral health care for Nigerian children. Hence, oral health education should be included in the training programme of Nigerian paediatricians.
Keywords: Dental caries, paediatricians, knowledge, children
Résumé
Contexte: Un grand nombre d’enfants nigérians souffrant de la carie dentaire sont abandonnés sans soin, entrainant ainsi de sérieuses complications. Les pédiatres offrent souvent des premiers soins et pourraient être utiles pour l’amélioration des soins de santé buccodentaire.
Objectif: Evaluer les connaissances sur la santé buccodentaire sur la carie dentaire et l’expérience professionnelle d’un échantillon de pédiatres nigérians.
Méthodes: Une enquête transversale par un questionnaire auto-administré de pédiatres participant à la conférence nationale annuelle de l’Association pédiatrique nigériane, en Janvier 2011 à Abuja, au Nigeria a été menée. Le questionnaire a évalué les connaissances sur la carie de l’enfance, les services de santé bucco-dentaire fournis et l’attitude des services de prévention des maladies de dents. L’analyse des données a été effectuée à l’aide d’Epi-Info (version 3.5), un logiciel statistique.
Résultats: Sur 200 questionnaires distribués, 145 ont été correctement remplis et retournés (taux de réponse de 72,5%). Le genre des personnes interrogées a été presque uniformément réparti. Leur âge variait de 26 à 77 ans (moyenne 41,8 ± 7,4 ans). Au total, 83 (57,2%). Les personnes interrogées ont déclaré avoir reçu une éducation sanitaire bucco-dentaire avant cette étude. Plus de 90% des personnes interrogées avaient reçu des plaintes dentaires de leurs patients. Très peu (26,2%) ont régulièrement subi le dépistage buccodentaire, bien que 94,2% estiment que le dépistage par voie orale devrait être réalisé régulièrement. Seul 28,9% des personnes interrogées estimaient être vraiment informés de la santé bucco-dentaire tandis que 86,6% étaient disposés à recevoir une formation sur les soins de la santé bucco-dentaire. La plupart des personnes interrogées ont convenu que les évaluations dentaires et des conseils devraient être inclus dans l’examen pédiatrique qui se fait habituellement dans les cliniques.
Conclusion: Les pédiatres pourraient être utiles pour accroître l’accès aux soins de santé bucco-dentaire pour les enfants nigérians. Par conséquent, l’éducation à la santé bucco-dentaire doit être inclue dans le programme de formation des pédiatres nigérians.
Correspondence: Dr. M.O. Agbaje, Department of Child Dental Health, Faculty of Dentistry, Lagos State University College of Medicine, Ikeja, LagosState, Nigeria. E-mail: yagbaje@yahoo.com
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