Enhancing Oral Health Knowledge Among Elementary School Teachers
Outcomes of A Quasi‐Experimental Educational Intervention
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21354150 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Taís Zacaria (0009-0003-9297-5170, ATITUS‐Educação Passo Fundo Brazil), Fernanda Ruffo Ortiz (0000-0003-0759-9661, ATITUS‐Educação Passo Fundo Brazil, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 95 |
| Issue | 11 |
| Pages | 955-961 |
| Publication date | 2025-11-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of School Health (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0022-4391 • E-ISSN: 1746-1561 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/josh.70062 |
| PMID | 40781743 |
| OpenAlex | W4413054195 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 20 |
BACKGROUND: Knowledge about oral health becomes essential, especially during school years when the prevalence of dental problems is high. The objective was to assess whether an educational intervention improves teachers' knowledge of oral health. METHODS: The sample was obtained through a census of elementary school teachers from public schools in Brazil. A structured questionnaire, consisting of questions about demographic data, knowledge of dental caries and periodontal disease, oral hygiene practices, preventive dentistry, and attitudes toward oral health, was administered three times: before, immediately after, and three months after the educational intervention. An educational intervention was conducted through a face-to-face session (1-h lecture) in all schools, addressing oral health topics (aforementioned). Descriptive analysis and comparison tests (McNemar and Wilcoxon) were employed to assess the impact of the intervention on teachers' knowledge. RESULTS: Eighty-three teachers agreed to participate (89% adherence rate), and 53 teachers completed all three questionnaires (64% final retention rate). The results showed that the intervention improved teachers' knowledge immediately after and three months after the intervention (p < 0.05) in responses related to knowledge of dental caries, periodontal disease, oral hygiene practices, and preventive dentistry. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that teachers' knowledge of oral health improved after the intervention.
Family medicine · Health education · Intervention (counseling) · Knowledge level · McNemar's test · Oral health · Oral hygiene · Public health · Dental Health and Care Utilization · Dental Research and COVID-19 · Dentistry · Medicine · Nursing · Oral microbiology and periodontitis research · Psychology
Oral Health-related Quality of Life
Participation Rates in Epidemiologic Studies
Implementation and evaluation of a teacher intervention program on classroom communication
Oral Health-Related Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviours of Elementary School Teachers
Effectiveness of theory-based educational interventions of promoting oral health among elementary school students
The role of repetition and reinforcement in school-based oral health education-a cluster randomized controlled trial
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |