Effectiveness of three different types of educational methods on implementation of proper oral hygiene behaviour prior to orthodontic treatment

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to compare three teaching methods’ time and personnel requirements, and their effects on plaque and gingival indices. METHODS: This study was a single-blind randomized controlled trial on fixed orthodontic appliance candidates (n = 90), assigned into a control group (n = 30) and two different study groups (n = 30 each). The control group received standard printed educational material and was assisted with verbal information. The study groups either received video-assisted or hands-on training about fixed orthodontic appliance and oral hygiene. The time requirements for all three educational interventions was recorded during the initial visit. The adequacy of oral hygiene was documented through plaque and gingival indices during the initial visit and eighth week of the treatment. The continuous variables were analyzed using 1-way ANOVA. Tukey HSD and Student t-tests were used for post-hoc comparisons (α?#8197;= 0.05). Also, a chi-square test was used for the analysis of categorical variables. RESULTS: Standard education failed to maintain the plaque and gingival indices at the eighth week of the treatment. Although both video-assisted and hands-on training took a considerable amount of time, they served well in preserving both of the indices at the eighth week. The longer the educational intervention was, the better the preservation of the plaque and gingival indices. CONCLUSION: Educational intervention, either with video-assisted or hands-on programs, provided better results in oral hygiene depending on the time and personnel constraints of the orthodontist.