Golkari Ali, Khosropanah Hengameh, Saadati Faezeh
Department of Dental Public Health , Iran.
Department of Periodontics , Iran.
J Public Health Res. 2013 Sep 5;2(2):e15. doi: 10.4081/jphr.2013.e15. eCollection 2013 Sep 2.
Periodontal disease is considered as a risk factor for poor pregnancy outcomes, including preterm birth and low birth weight. Only few studies have assessed the knowledge and practice behaviours of healthcare providers, concerning oral health during pregnancy, periodontal diseases and their role in adverse pregnancy outcomes. The present study aimed to compare the knowledge and practice behaviours of a group of Iranian obstetricians, general practitioners, and midwives about periodontal disease.
A cross-sectional study was conducted using a self-administered, structured questionnaire that was previously used in North Carolina. The questionnaire was translated into Persian language and was randomly distributed among 200 obstetricians, general practitioners, and midwives participating in an international congress. Data were analysed by Chi-square and spearman correlation tests using SPSS statistical software (version PASW 18).
A total of 150 completed the questionnaires, achieving a response rate of 75%. Totally, the knowledge of the obstetricians was more accurate compared to the two other groups and the midwives were the worst. More experienced general practitioners (P=0.002) and obstetricians (P=0.049) did less dental examinations for their patients during their first visit or periodically. More experienced obstetricians also referred their patients for dental examinations during pregnancy less than their less experienced colleagues (P<0.001).
Although the participants had some knowledge about periodontal disease and its association with adverse pregnancy outcomes, there is much space for improvements. The participants' attitude and knowledge were consistent. Significance for public healthPreterm labour and low birth weight are considered to be one of the greatest problems in obstetrical medicine and are one of the most prevalent risk factors for death during the neonatal period. On the other hand, periodontal diseases are considered as important factors affecting pregnant women and their new-born children. Therefore it seems quite important to find out whether the healthcare providers who are most visited by pregnant women are aware of the periodontal disease and its relationship with poor pregnancy outcomes. The present study aimed to assess and compare the knowledge and beliefs of a group of Iranian obstetricians, general practitioners, and midwives regarding periodontal disease, and to assess whether their practice behaviours reflected their beliefs. The authors hope that publication of this paper would provide an evidence to plan for these health professionals' education on the importance of pregnant women's oral health promotion.
牙周疾病被视为不良妊娠结局的一个风险因素，包括早产和低出生体重。仅有少数研究评估了医疗保健提供者关于孕期口腔健康、牙周疾病及其在不良妊娠结局中作用的知识和实践行为。本研究旨在比较一组伊朗产科医生、全科医生和助产士关于牙周疾病的知识和实践行为。
采用一项横断面研究，使用一份先前在北卡罗来纳州使用过的自填式结构化问卷。该问卷被翻译成波斯语，并随机分发给参加一次国际大会的200名产科医生、全科医生和助产士。使用SPSS统计软件（版本PASW 18）通过卡方检验和斯皮尔曼相关性检验对数据进行分析。
共有150人完成了问卷，回复率为75%。总体而言，产科医生的知识比其他两组更准确，助产士的情况最差。经验更丰富的全科医生（P = 0.002）和产科医生（P = 0.049）在患者首次就诊时或定期为患者进行的牙科检查较少。经验更丰富的产科医生在孕期将患者转诊进行牙科检查的次数也比经验较少的同事少（P < 0.001）。
尽管参与者对牙周疾病及其与不良妊娠结局的关联有一定了解，但仍有很大的改进空间。参与者的态度和知识是一致的。对公共卫生的意义早产和低出生体重被认为是产科医学中最大的问题之一，也是新生儿期最普遍的死亡风险因素之一。另一方面，牙周疾病被视为影响孕妇及其新生儿的重要因素。因此，弄清楚孕妇最常就诊的医疗保健提供者是否了解牙周疾病及其与不良妊娠结局的关系似乎非常重要。本研究旨在评估和比较一组伊朗产科医生、全科医生和助产士关于牙周疾病的知识和信念，并评估他们的实践行为是否反映了他们的信念。作者希望本文的发表将为规划针对这些卫生专业人员开展关于促进孕妇口腔健康重要性的教育提供证据。
