Association between Demographic Factors Parental Oral Health Knowledge and their Influences on the Dietary and Oral Hygiene Practices followed by Parents in Children of 2–6 Years in Buraidah City Saudi Arabia: A Pilot Study

BACKGROUND: Preschool children's oral hygiene maintenance is greatly prejudiced by their parent's knowledge and understanding regarding oral health. When parents are devoid of the basic awareness of caries-associated factors, the significance of primary teeth, and oral healthcare, it is challenging to program disease prevention strategies and apply them effectively. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: This pilot study aimed to assess the knowledge regarding oral health, its effects, and the influence of demographic values on the parental practices among the parents of 2–6-year-old children by using a self-administered pretested questionnaire. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The questionnaire was randomly distributed among parents of 2–6-year-old children who visited Buraidah Central Hospital. The sample size taken for this pilot study was 1,000. The questionnaire included 26 questions associated with the parent's knowledge about the oral health of the child, hygiene maintenance, and dietary habits. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS software. RESULTS: In the present research, a total of 1,000 parents participated in the study. It was observed that parental knowledge and hygiene practices increased as the educational status increased. It was also observed that as the number of children decreased in the family, the dietary practices and hygiene practices improved. All these observations were found to be statistically significant (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Parent's education and knowledge reflect in their child's development of healthy practices. Thus the parents need to know about oral health, which can be put into practice in their children. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: This research helps us to understand the significance of parental knowledge and education in the oral health practices and maintenance among the children inculcated by parents, which can help in bringing down the oral health diseases in children in future. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Al Mejmaj DI, Nimbeni SB, Alrashidi RM. Association between Demographic Factors Parental Oral Health Knowledge and their Influences on the Dietary and Oral Hygiene Practices followed by Parents in Children of 2–6 Years in Buraidah City Saudi Arabia: A Pilot Study. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2022;15(4):407-411.