Parental Awareness and Knowledge toward their Children's Oral Health in the City of Dammam, Saudi Arabia

Fatimah Saud Alshammari; Rehab Ali Alshammari; Motieah Hathal Alshammari; Malak Farraj Alshammari; Azhar Khairallah Alibrahim; Faisal Abdullah Al Sineedi; Khlood Abdulkader Alkurdi; Abdullah Faraj Alshammari

doi:10.5005/jp-journals-10005-1894

Parental Awareness and Knowledge toward their Children's Oral Health in the City of Dammam, Saudi Arabia

Int J Clin Pediatr Dent. 2021 Jan-Feb;14(1):100-103. doi: 10.5005/jp-journals-10005-1894.

Authors

Fatimah Saud Alshammari¹, Rehab Ali Alshammari², Motieah Hathal Alshammari¹, Malak Farraj Alshammari¹, Azhar Khairallah Alibrahim³, Faisal Abdullah Al Sineedi⁴, Khlood Abdulkader Alkurdi⁵, Abdullah Faraj Alshammari⁶

Affiliations

¹ Ministry of Health, Hail, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
² College of Dentistry, University of Hail, Hail, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
³ College of Dentistry, Riyadh Elm University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
⁴ King Fahad Military Medical Complex, Ministry of Defense, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.
⁶ Department of Basic Dental and Medical Science, College of Dentistry, University of Hail, Hail, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Introduction: Two main factors have a great influence on the youth's oral well-being. These are their dental health and age. These two factors are significantly directed by parents through establishing a system of proper oral hygiene and a preventative routine for those young adults.

Aim and objective: The following study was run in the Dammam region, Saudi Arabia, to assess guardian awareness of youngster's dental health.

Materials and methods: This community-based study was designed in a cross-sectional pattern, where a sample size of 248 parents who fulfilled inclusion criteria was selected and a well-designed validated questionnaire was used for the collected database using SPSS (VER. 24).

Results: The main found included that, about 51% of participants were fathers and 49% were mothers, 90% of them above the age of 26 years old and most of the participants had a secondary certificate or university degree, 38% and 45%, respectively, only 64% of parents have checked their children teeth, the average of overall knowledge of parents toward dental health was medium 7.97 points out of 16.0 points and there was a statistically significant relationship between parents type, educational level, and overall knowledge related to oral health.

Conclusion: From our study, it was acknowledged that the perception of children's oral health status by their parents in the Dammam region is relatively medium, so general awareness of parents' knowledge should be raised by conducting effective oral health programs and interventions.

How to cite this article: Alshammari FS, Alshammari RA, Alshammari MH, et al. Parental Awareness and Knowledge toward their Children's Oral Health in the City of Dammam, Saudi Arabia. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2021;14(1):100-103.

Keywords: Dammam region; Dental health; Parental awareness; Saudi Arabia.