Effectiveness of an oral health educational intervention for individuals with special health care needs from a southern Brazilian city

Abstract

Aim: To assess the effects of an oral health education strategy targeted at students with disabilities.

Methods: This quasi-experimental study included students aged 7 to 24 years. The intervention was conducted for 5 weeks and divided into 2 phases: (1) comprising supervised toothbrushing and educational activities to students; (2) verbal oral health instructions and oral hygiene demonstration targeted at the caregivers. A clinical examination was conducted to evaluate the dental debris and gingival bleeding before the intervention, and the Wilcoxon test was performed after phase 1 and 2 for comparisons between paired samples.

Results: A significant decrease in dental debris and gingival indices compared with baseline occurred after phase 1 (p < 0.05). After the meeting with caregivers (phase 2), there was significant decrease in the debris-index (p < 0.05).

Conclusions: Providing a simple and short-term educational intervention to students with disabilities had a positive impact on their oral health.

Keywords: dental; disabled children; disabled persons; health education; oral health.