Umeizudike K A, Iwuala S O, Ozoh O B, Ekekezie O O, Umeizudike T I
Department of Preventive Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.
Department of Medicine, Faculty of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.
J West Afr Coll Surg. 2015 Apr-Jun;5(2):43-65.
Periodontal diseases (PD) impact the outcome of some systemic illnesses. Medical doctors' knowledge and practices regarding this association may influence the effective management of their patients. This has been understudied among Nigerian doctors.
To determine the knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding periodontal-systemic disease interactions among medical doctors in Nigeria.
This was a descriptive, cross sectional study by design, while the study setting was at the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria (NPMCN), Ijanikin, Lagos. The study participants were senior resident doctors attending compulsory Research Methodology and Management courses organized by the NPMCN in 2014. Self-administered questionnaires were distributed among the participants to obtain information on their socio-demography, PD knowledge, association between PD and systemic illnesses, attitudes to periodontal health and oral hygiene practices questionnaires. Student t test and ANOVA were used to test associations between variables. The level of significance was set at p < 0.05.
A total of 236 doctors participated in the study with a mean age of 35.8 (± 4.5) years, males being predominant (62.7%). Few doctors (42.1%) knew dental plaque as the main cause of PD, while 16.5% were aware of gum bleeding as earliest sign. Female doctors displayed better knowledge than males (p= 0.044). Majority were aware of an association between PD and chronic kidney disease (88.6%) and diabetes (86.5%). Knowledge of PD as a risk factor for stroke was 33.1%, poor glycemic control (25.4%), and pre-term low birthweight (14.8%). Most doctors had positive attitudes towards patients' periodontal health, while 33.5% assessed their patients' oral cavity regularly. All the doctors used tooth brush and paste to clean their teeth, while 43.2% cleaned twice daily. Only 16.5% used dental floss frequently and was associated with higher PD knowledge (p<0.001) and higher attitude scores (p=0.005).
Senior resident doctors in Nigeria have positive attitudes regarding periodontal health. However, poor knowledge of periodontal disease, and periodontal disease as risk factor for some systemic illnesses, coupled with unsatisfactory oral hygiene and dental examination practices are evident among the doctors.
牙周疾病（PD）会影响一些全身性疾病的治疗结果。医生对于这种关联的了解和实践可能会影响对患者的有效管理。在尼日利亚医生中，这方面的研究较少。
确定尼日利亚医生对牙周 - 全身疾病相互作用的了解、态度和实践情况。
本研究采用描述性横断面设计，研究地点为拉各斯伊贾尼基的尼日利亚国家研究生医学院（NPMCN）。研究参与者为2014年参加NPMCN组织的必修研究方法与管理课程的高级住院医生。向参与者发放自填式问卷，以获取他们的社会人口统计学信息、牙周疾病知识、牙周疾病与全身性疾病的关联、对牙周健康的态度以及口腔卫生习惯问卷。使用学生t检验和方差分析来检验变量之间的关联。显著性水平设定为p < 0.05。
共有236名医生参与了该研究，平均年龄为35.8（±4.5）岁，男性占主导（62.7%）。很少有医生（42.1%）知道牙菌斑是牙周疾病的主要原因，而16.5%的人知道牙龈出血是最早的症状。女医生比男医生表现出更好的知识水平（p = 0.044）。大多数人知道牙周疾病与慢性肾病（88.6%）和糖尿病（86.5%）之间的关联。将牙周疾病视为中风危险因素的知晓率为33.1%，血糖控制不佳（25.4%），早产低体重（14.8%）。大多数医生对患者的牙周健康持积极态度，而33.5%的人定期检查患者的口腔。所有医生都使用牙刷和牙膏清洁牙齿，43.2%的人每天清洁两次。只有16.5%的人经常使用牙线，这与更高的牙周疾病知识水平（p < 0.001）和更高的态度得分（p = 0.005）相关。
尼日利亚的高级住院医生对牙周健康持积极态度。然而，医生们对牙周疾病以及牙周疾病作为一些全身性疾病危险因素的了解不足，同时口腔卫生和牙科检查实践也不尽人意。
