Awareness on oral hygiene practices among rural primary school teachers

Abstract

Oral disease can be viewed as a general medical issue because of its high perva-siveness and huge social effect. Interminable oral ailment ordinarily prompts tooth loss and has a physical, psychological and monetary impact. This survey was done to assess the awareness on oral hygiene practices among rural primary school teachers. A closed-ended questionnaire, consisting of 10 com-ponents, was distributed among rural primary school teachers in the Madurai district of Tamil Nadu, India (n=127). The questionnaire elicited knowledge and practices of oral hygiene, their brushing habits, use of toothpaste, pow-der, use of mouth rinses, the practice of night brushing and tongue cleaning. The responses were collected and analysed. 100% of the respondents practice regular tooth brushing.42% of them brushed both during the morning and night and 58% brushed in the morning,96% used toothpaste and 4% used tooth powder.34% used mouth rinses.16% used tongue cleaners. The find-ings of the study indicated that the awareness and knowledge of oral hygiene among primary school teachers in the rural district of Salem was good. Teach-ers, nevertheless, need educational programs, workshops and symposiums on oral health issues to further empower them to educate the students.