Age and reasons for first dental visit and knowledge and attitude of parents toward dental procedures for Puducherry children aged 0–9 years

Abstract

Background: The first dental visit provides the dentist an opportunity to advise parents on prevention of oral diseases and also allows for early detection of caries and arrest of its progression. The first dental visit should occur no later than 12 months of age. However, parents fail to give importance to primary dentition as they feel that they are temporary. Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the age of first dental visit and most common reasons for the visit among children aged 0–9 years and to examine the knowledge and attitude of their parents toward treatment procedures for children, taking into account their socioeconomic and educational status. Materials and Methods: After obtaining informed consent from parents, sociodemographic data that included age and gender of the child, educational status, occupation of parents, and annual family income were collected. A validated questionnaire was given to the parents. Statistical Analysis Used: Descriptive statistics (proportion) was used to report the data. To examine differences in knowledge and attitudes among different socioeconomic and educational groups, chi-square test was used with P value <0.05. Results: A total of 300 completed questionnaires were analyzed. Age of first dental visit was 6–9 years (57%) and the most common reason for the visit was decayed teeth (33%). The overall attitude of parents toward treatment procedures for children was good in spite of low levels of knowledge about primary teeth and role of the pedodontist. Conclusions: It is necessary to promote early dental visits by providing education on perinatal and infant oral healthcare to the healthcare professionals dealing with children. It is also important to promote awareness regarding the maintenance of primary dentition.

Children&#39;s Choice of Dentist&#39;s Attire, Color, and Type of Mouth Mask: A Cross-sectional Study in Puducherry, India

“…19 The distraction component utilized in the magic mask used in this study grabbed the children's attention; however, results obtained could not be compared as it was a novel idea. Considering the mean age of first dental visit of this population which was found to occur at around 6-9 years 20 and since majority of the study population were in the age-group of 4-11 years, it would be wise to consider female dentists for the introductory visits and have dentists dressed in both white coat and child-friendly cartoon attire, pink or blue masks, and cartoon or magic masks to attract and motivate them.…”

Digital surveillance: Monitoring the activity of Internet users searching for information related to early childhood caries

“…17 Consequently, parents and caregivers usually seek treatment for babies and toddlers only after the recognition of symptoms as dental pain, which appear only in specific situations as the final stage of dental caries. 18,19 In this sense, the hypothesis of a significant positive association between RSV (digital activity/interest) and YLDs for untreated caries (burden of disease determined as dental pain) seemed plausible; however, only in France, those indicators were associated negatively. It might represent a greater engagement of people in consuming information for the maintenance of good oral health conditions, which can contribute to the low burden of the disease observed over time, and vice versa.…”

The Meaning and Purpose of Primary Tooth Disposal Rituals: Implications for Pediatric Dental Professionals

“…Finally, improving dentists' understanding of how parents think about their children's teeth, the practices surrounding these primary teeth, and the impact of culture, race, and ethnicity may also help providers give anticipatory guidance to ensure timely primary oral care (31). Because the primary dentition is temporary, parents may not give their child's teeth the same importance as that of permanent teeth, leading to inadequate management of oral health (32,33). In order for dental providers to educate parents around preventing dental diseases, practitioners must have a thorough understanding of different cultures within their patient population (34).…”

“…In order for dental providers to educate parents around preventing dental diseases, practitioners must have a thorough understanding of different cultures within their patient population (34). Poor attention to children's oral health has been tied to dental caries and more invasive caries-related treatments (32,33). Caries-related visits have been shown to decrease the likelihood of experiencing positive emotions when losing the first tooth (1), counteracting the positive effects of tooth disposal traditions.…”