Educational interventions in health services and oral health: Systematic review

38Citations
Citations of this article
170Readers
Mendeley users who have this article in their library.

This article is free to access.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the effectiveness of educational interventions performed in health services in the improvement of clinical behaviors and outcomes in oral health. METHODS: We have carried out a systematic review of the literature searching the PubMed, Lilacs, and SciELO databases. We have included studies that have investigated interventions performed by health professionals working in health services and who have used educational actions as main approach to improve behavioral and clinical outcomes in oral health. RESULTS: The search amounted to 832 articles and 14 of them met all the inclusion criteria. Five studies have only exclusively evaluated the effectiveness of interventions on caries reduction, three have exceptionally evaluated oral health behaviors, and the other articles have evaluated the effectiveness of interventions for both clinical outcomes (dental caries and periodontal conditions) and behaviors in oral health. Most of the studies (n = 9) were based on randomized controlled trials; the other ones have evaluated before and after the intervention. Five studies have reported a significant reduction of dental caries, and five of the six studies evaluating behavioral outcomes have found some positive change. CONCLUSIONS: Most studies evaluating behavioral and periodontal outcomes have shown significant improvements in favor of interventions. All studies evaluating caries have shown a reduction in new lesions or cases of the disease in the groups receiving the interventions, although only five of the eleven articles have found a statistically significant difference. Educational interventions carried out by health professionals in the context of their practice have the potential to promote oral health in the population.

Cite

CITATION STYLE

APA

Menegaz, A. M., Silva, A. E. R., & Cascaes, A. M. (2018). Educational interventions in health services and oral health: Systematic review. Revista de Saude Publica. Universidade de Sao Paulo. https://doi.org/10.11606/S1518-8787.2018052000109

Register to see more suggestions

Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.

Already have an account?

Save time finding and organizing research with Mendeley

Sign up for free