Extent of Awareness Regarding Oral Health and Dental Treatment Needs among Individuals with Hearing and Speech Impairments in Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to evaluate the awareness level of the individuals with hearing and speech impairments (deaf and dumb individuals), in relation to their oral health and dental treatment needs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The approach of stratified randomization method of sampling was used for the selection of participants. About 240 people with hearing and speech impairments (deaf and dumb) were selected from four cities of Saudi Arabia, which includes AlKharj, Riyadh, Dammam and Abha. A questionnaire of two sections was distributed among the participants for collecting data. A simple descriptive analysis was done, and the data were expressed in terms of frequencies and percentages. Microsoft Excel has been used for compilation of data and execution of graphs. Moreover, the questionnaire data were subject to SPSS data analysis (IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 22.0, Armonk, IBM Corp. NY). RESULTS: Most of the participants were not aware of the importance of oral health. Majority of the participants described that they did not visit qualified dentists in the past and many of them did not know the right way of doing tooth brushing. Hence, deaf and dumb individuals lack basic knowledge about oral health and dental treatment needs. CONCLUSION: The study concluded that the awareness level of oral health and dental treatment needs is low among individuals with hearing and speech impairments (deaf and dumb) in Saudi Arabia.

Oral health knowledge and attitude among caregivers of special needs patients at a Comprehensive Rehabilitation Centre: an analytical study.

AIM: To evaluate knowledge and attitude of caregivers/healthcare workers regarding oral health of special need patients, at a comprehensive rehabilitation centre. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A validated self-administered structured questionnaire was used in an interview style among 120 caregivers at a comprehensive rehabilitation centre. The first part of questionnaire collected demographic information (age, gender, experience, literacy). The other part of the questionnaire was related to the knowledge and attitude of caregivers regarding importance of oral health including oral hygiene practices, cause of tooth decay, significance of fluoride, common oral problems and need for oral health education. Comparison between oral health knowledge and oral health attitude of caregivers was done using one-sample t Test. The level of significance was set as p=0.005*. RESULTS: Adequate oral health knowledge was found to be among 59.2% and favourable attitude of caregivers towards oral health care was found among 48.3%. The results indicate that though majority among caregivers had adequate knowledge but their attitude towards oral health was inadequate. CONCLUSION: Caregivers showed a deficiency in the proper oral health attitude. To improve oral health attitudes of caregivers, dental education plus training programs should be given high priority.