Comparison of the Effect of Two Oral Hygiene Education Approaches on the Gingival Health and Dental Plaque of Boarding School Students in Fariman, Iran

Abstract

Introduction: The school-based oral health programs are an opportunity to inspire positive attitudes and proper oral health behavior in students. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of two oral health education methods on the oral health of boarding high school students in Fariman, Iran. Methods: In this interventional study, 345 students were randomly divided into three groups, namely self-led (control), teacher-led (instructed by teachers), and peer-led (instructed by students). All students were subjected to Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (OHI-S), Gingival Index (GI), Plaque Index (PI) measurements before and three months after the intervention. The data were analyzed using the paired t-test, the Kruskal-Wallis, and the Chi-square tests. The P-value less than 0.05 was considered to be significant. Results: The results of the study showed a significant decrease regarding the scores of all three indices (P<0.001) in the peer-led group, compared to the self-led intervention. According to the paired sample t-test analyses following the intervention, there was a significant decrease in the mean OHI-S , GI, and  PI in all three groups (P<0.001),  peer-led group (P<0.001), and peer-led and self-led groups (P<0.001), respectively.  Conclusion: Due to the significant decline in all three indices of the peer-led group compared to the other two groups, using talented students as “oral and dental health assistants” may be an effective approach for promotion of oral and dental hygiene among teenagers. However, there is aneed to conduct more research in this field of study.