Educational Intervention of Improve Student's Oral Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis School-Based

BACKGROUND: The present research aimed to assess the effects of oral health intervention programs at school level on students' oral hygiene in developing countries. To this aim, a systematic review and meta-analysis approach was employed. METHODS: The present research was done by surfing electronic databases with MEDLINE Ovid (Embase Ovid, Scopus), Web of Science from 2000 to Mar 2020. The data were collected using a standard type of data collection including specific studies to observational ones, and the data entered RevMan 2014. The eligibility criteria were individually randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or cluster-RCTs including quasi-experimental papers with oral health interventions. The RevMan 2014 package was used for a meta-analysis done through random-effects models. RESULTS: Meta-analyses revealed statistically significant divergences in terms of knowledge (SMD 3.31, 95% CI 2.52 to 4.11; I(2) = 98; P<0.001), attitude (SMD 1.99, 95% CI 0. 43 to 3.54; I(2) = 99; P<0.001), behavior (SMD 4.74, 95% CI 3.70 to 5.77; I(2) = 99; P<0.001), plaque index (SMD −1.01, 95% CI −1.50 to −0. 51; I(2) = 97; P<0.001) and Gingival index (SMD 0. 33, 95% CI −0. 36 to 1. 02; I(2) = 98; P=0.34) in the case of students who received educational interventions versus those with ordinary care. CONCLUSION: The present findings attested to the effectiveness of the educational interventions in improving oral health knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and so on which can presumably contribute to a better oral hygiene, lower incidence of oral diseases, and lower costs of the treatments imposed by oral diseases.