ORAL HEALTH-RELATED KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDES &BEHAVIOURS AMONG SCHOOL TEACHERS IN CHENGALPATTU DISTRICT -TAMIL NADU: A QUESTIONNAIRE SURVEY

Abstract

AIM: To assess the oral health-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour among school teachers in Chengalpattu district, Tamil Nadu, India.

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey-based study was conducted among school teachers in Chengalpattu district using a validated self -administered questionnaire. The questionnaire was composed of 17 multiple choice questions categorized under three domains namely knowledge, attitude, and behaviour was circulated via online Google form data obtained was subjected to statistical analysis using spss software version 20.

Results: On analyzing the knowledge, the school teachers perceived knowledge regarding the primary teeth, oral disease origins, oral hygiene techniques, and management of tooth injury was found to be very less. While assessing the actual knowledge it was found to be higher when compared to the perceived knowledge in terms of primary teeth, oral disease origins, and oral hygiene techniques but in the management of trauma it was consistent with the perceived knowledge

conclusions: The school teachers perceived knowledge and actual knowledge was, The teachers’ knowledge about dental trauma management was inadequate, necessitating urgent educational interventions The oral hygiene behaviours were not associated with teachers’ oral health knowledge, attitudes, or practice, thus requiring further investigation.

Keywords: Knowledge, oral health, oral hygiene practices, school teacher, trauma