Periodontal health status of 12-year-old Sudanese schoolchildren and educational level of parents in Khartoum province

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the oral hygiene practice, the prevalence of dental plaque, gingivitis and calculus among 12-year-old Sudanese schoolchildren in Khartoum province, and to correlate the above to gender and educational level of parents.

Methods: A total of 636 children 12 years of age, whose parents granted permission, were examined from public and private schools in different geographical locations representing different socioeconomic classes in Khartoum province. The variables of this study had been collected by a single examiner using a direct interview questionnaire and clinical examination with appropriate indices. The intraexaminer reliability was (Alpha = 0.9321).

Results: Regular brushing in 92.3%, irregular in 6.9% and no brushing in 0.8% of all children. The frequency of brushing was 81.4% once, 16.4% twice and 1.4% more than twice a day. For all children, 93.1% used the toothbrush while 3.9% used a Miswak. Concerning the technique of brushing, 14.3% brushed vertically, 82.7% brushed horizontally and only 2% brushed in a circular way. It was found that only 5.2% used other oral hygiene means (dental floss and tooth pick) for cleaning teeth. The results showed a high correlation between oral hygiene practices of the children and both parents' education (P = 0.001) as well as gender (P = 0.001). The mean of plaque index was (0.888), gingival index was (0.686) and calculus index was (0.107). In the entire sample these indices were found to differ significantly with sex (P = 0.000), parents' education (P = 0.000) and brushing practice (P = 0.000).)

Conclusion: It was recommended that, providing intensive advice and supervision concerning oral hygiene practices through public and school health care is mandatory. Other studies for rural and urban areas of different age groups should be done for comparisons.