Conference abstract
Knowledge, attitude and practices of oral health among soldiers in a military hospital: a pilot survey
Pan African Medical Journal - Conference Proceedings. 2022:13(17).03
Feb 2022.
doi: 10.11604/pamj-cp.2022.13.17.877
Archived on: 03 Feb 2022
Contact the corresponding author
Keywords: Knowledge, attitude and practices, military hospital, oral health awareness, soldiers
Oral presentation
Knowledge, attitude and practices of oral health among soldiers in a military hospital: a pilot survey
Osa Igbineweka1,&, Folake Barakat Lawal1
1Department of Periodontology and Community Dentistry, University College Hospital, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
&Corresponding author
Introduction: the aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of oral health among soldiers in 2-Division Hospital, Ibadan, Oyo State.
Methods: this was a cross-sectional pilot study conducted among 67 consecutive soldiers attending the medical out-patient unit of 2-Division Hospital, Odogbo Cantonment, Ibadan. A self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain information on their oral health knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP). Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 23.
Results: there were 49.3% males, 52.5% were married and 58.2% had tertiary education. The mean age was 33.5 (±9.9) years. Many (64.2%) did not know the implication of gum bleeding or ways of preventing it, while 62.6% knew causes of tooth decay and 46.3% mentioned that tobacco has negative effect on oral health. The majority (74.6%) believed oral health was important to general health and 80.8% cared for the teeth as other body parts. About 52.2% cleaned their teeth at least twice daily and only 19.4% had visited the dentist. More males (64.5%) knew the negative effect of tobacco compared to (35.5%) females (p = 0.020). Those married consulted the dentist and cleaned their teeth more often than singles (83.3% vs. 16.7%, p = 0.003) and (64.1% vs. 35.9%, p = 0.044) respectively. Those with tertiary education (77.8%) visited the dentist more than others (22.2%, p = 0.049).
Conclusion: suboptimal KAP exists among the studied soldiers. Those with higher educational qualification and the married had better KAP. There is need for oral health promotion among soldiers in the region.
Knowledge, attitude and practices of oral health among soldiers in a military hospital: a pilot survey
Osa Igbineweka1,&, Folake Barakat Lawal1
1Department of Periodontology and Community Dentistry, University College Hospital, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
&Corresponding author
Introduction: the aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of oral health among soldiers in 2-Division Hospital, Ibadan, Oyo State.
Methods: this was a cross-sectional pilot study conducted among 67 consecutive soldiers attending the medical out-patient unit of 2-Division Hospital, Odogbo Cantonment, Ibadan. A self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain information on their oral health knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP). Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 23.
Results: there were 49.3% males, 52.5% were married and 58.2% had tertiary education. The mean age was 33.5 (±9.9) years. Many (64.2%) did not know the implication of gum bleeding or ways of preventing it, while 62.6% knew causes of tooth decay and 46.3% mentioned that tobacco has negative effect on oral health. The majority (74.6%) believed oral health was important to general health and 80.8% cared for the teeth as other body parts. About 52.2% cleaned their teeth at least twice daily and only 19.4% had visited the dentist. More males (64.5%) knew the negative effect of tobacco compared to (35.5%) females (p = 0.020). Those married consulted the dentist and cleaned their teeth more often than singles (83.3% vs. 16.7%, p = 0.003) and (64.1% vs. 35.9%, p = 0.044) respectively. Those with tertiary education (77.8%) visited the dentist more than others (22.2%, p = 0.049).
Conclusion: suboptimal KAP exists among the studied soldiers. Those with higher educational qualification and the married had better KAP. There is need for oral health promotion among soldiers in the region.
