{"title":"Dental Caries Prevalence and Oral Health Status among 15-Year- Old Adolescents in Kosovo","authors":"Lulëjeta Ferizi, Venera Bimbashi, J. Kelmendi","doi":"10.15644/asc56/1/5","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Introduction Caries has a harmful impact on oral and general health and is a major public health problem among children and adolescents. The objective of present study was to investigate into dental caries, oral hygiene, the frequency of brushing habits and dental visits among 15- year- old adolescents. Material and methods This cross-sectional study was carried out on a random sample of 323 15- year- old adolescents in different schools and municipalities of Kosovo. Oral clinical examination and self-administered questionnaire were used to obtain information about dental caries and oral health practices. Oral hygiene and caries status in permanent dentition was assessed through the DMFT index and Oral Hygiene Index - Simplified (OHI-S). The level of statistical significance was set at p<0.05. Results The total mean of the DMFT index was 3.21 ± 2.193, while component D of the DMFT index dominated in both genders, with slightly higher values in boys compared to girls (2.15±2.092, and 1.91±1.919). The mean OHI-S index of adolescents aged 15 was found to be 1.945±3.926. Over 50% of schoolchildren brush their teeth only once per day and they have visited the dentist only when it was necessary. Irregular tooth-brushing, dental visits and poor oral hygiene index were significantly related to dental caries. Conclusion The results of the study showed poor oral health status among 15- year- old adolescents in Kosovo. There is an emergent need for caries-prevention programs focusing on oral health and healthy habits.","PeriodicalId":7154,"journal":{"name":"Acta Stomatologica Croatica","volume":"56 1","pages":"42 - 49"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4000,"publicationDate":"2022-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"2","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Acta Stomatologica Croatica","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.15644/asc56/1/5","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"DENTISTRY, ORAL SURGERY & MEDICINE","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 2
Abstract
Introduction Caries has a harmful impact on oral and general health and is a major public health problem among children and adolescents. The objective of present study was to investigate into dental caries, oral hygiene, the frequency of brushing habits and dental visits among 15- year- old adolescents. Material and methods This cross-sectional study was carried out on a random sample of 323 15- year- old adolescents in different schools and municipalities of Kosovo. Oral clinical examination and self-administered questionnaire were used to obtain information about dental caries and oral health practices. Oral hygiene and caries status in permanent dentition was assessed through the DMFT index and Oral Hygiene Index - Simplified (OHI-S). The level of statistical significance was set at p<0.05. Results The total mean of the DMFT index was 3.21 ± 2.193, while component D of the DMFT index dominated in both genders, with slightly higher values in boys compared to girls (2.15±2.092, and 1.91±1.919). The mean OHI-S index of adolescents aged 15 was found to be 1.945±3.926. Over 50% of schoolchildren brush their teeth only once per day and they have visited the dentist only when it was necessary. Irregular tooth-brushing, dental visits and poor oral hygiene index were significantly related to dental caries. Conclusion The results of the study showed poor oral health status among 15- year- old adolescents in Kosovo. There is an emergent need for caries-prevention programs focusing on oral health and healthy habits.
期刊介绍:
The Acta Stomatologica Croatica (ASCRO) is a leading scientific non-profit journal in the field of dental, oral and cranio-facial sciences during the past 44 years in Croatia. ASCRO publishes original scientific and clinical papers, preliminary communications, case reports, book reviews, letters to the editor and news. Review articles are published by invitation from the Editor-in-Chief by acclaimed professionals in distinct fields of dental medicine. All manuscripts are subjected to peer review process.