Impact of practice modification on oral health status of students: An interventional study from a tribal area of India

CONTEXT: Tooth decay precipitated by poor oral hygiene is one of the most common oral diseases that affect 60–90% of school children. It not only interferes with speech, self-esteem but pain caused by decay also affects nutrition intake, resulting in malnutrition with abnormal cognitive development. AIM: To evaluate the impact of health education and supervised brushing intervention on their oral health status. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: Cross-sectional interventional study. METHODS AND MATERIALS: The study was conducted on students of class 8(th), 9(th), and10(th) of an Ashramshala (tribal residential school). All the students present in the school on the day of data collection were included in the study. A semistructured questionnaire was used for data collection. A qualified dentist, who is part of research team, conducted oral examination of the students. They were asked to demonstrate their brushing method and relevant observation was noted. The oral health status of the students was analyzed using DMF (decayed, missed, and filled) index and oral hygiene index- simplified score (OHI-S). Three training and educational sessions of one hour each were conducted separately for each class and a separate session was conducted for the teachers and caretakers of the school. Thereafter, randomly selected students (peers) were asked to demonstrate the technique to their peers to ensure proper understanding. Compliance was ensured through weekly follow ups to the school by the research team. DMF score and OHI-S were recalculated after 3 months and compared with their previous scores. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Chi-square test, one-way analysis of variance and paired t-test were used for analysis. RESULTS: The mean DMF and OHI-S score of the students was 2.61+/-2.309 and 2.11+/-0.96, respectively. A significant change (P = 0.021) in OHI scores was observed as a result of intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Promoting healthy dental practice with supportive supervision form the cornerstone for good health and hygiene.