Health Research Center, Life Style Institute, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Health Education Department, Faculty of Health, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
BMC Oral Health. 2022 Mar 27;22(1):94. doi: 10.1186/s12903-022-02132-2.
Oral health problems especially dental caries are common in school children, and education programs may help to prevent these conditions. The aim of current study was to examine the effects of an educational program based on a Health Belief Model (HBM) to improve oral health behaviors of elementary school children.
A total of 112 children ages 6-12 years old accompanied by one of their parents were randomly assigned to intervention/test and control groups. In the intervention group, five consecutive weekly educational sessions based on the HBM were provided, while the control group received only routine education delivered by the dental clinic. The Decayed, Missing, and Filled Teeth (DMFT) score, papillary bleeding index, and responses to the HBM questionnaire were assessed in the intervention and control groups at baseline and three-month follow-up after the intervention was completed. Within-group and between-group differences were examined using the Student's t-test and analysis of covariance.
All HBM domains were improved at follow-up in the intervention group compared to the control group (p < 0.001). The largest change was in perceived susceptibility, whereas the smallest changes were in perceived severity and perceived benefits. The papillary bleeding index demonstrated a significant change from baseline to follow-up in the intervention group (reduction of 0.7, 95% CI = - 0.9 to - 0.5). All components of the DMFT score except missing teeth also improved in the intervention group compared to controls. However, no significant difference was found in total DMFT score between intervention and control groups.
An education program based on HBM may be more effective than current methods used to educate children and their parents on optimal oral health behaviors. Administration of interventions of this type along with other school-based programs to prevent dental caries may be helpful in grade-school children.
口腔健康问题，尤其是龋齿，在学龄儿童中很常见，而教育计划可能有助于预防这些问题。本研究旨在检验基于健康信念模型（HBM）的教育计划对改善学龄儿童口腔健康行为的效果。
共有 112 名 6-12 岁的儿童及其父母中的一位随机分配到干预/测试组和对照组。在干预组中，连续进行五周基于 HBM 的教育课程，而对照组仅接受由牙科诊所提供的常规教育。在基线和干预完成三个月后的随访中，评估干预组和对照组的龋齿、缺失、补牙（DMFT）评分、牙乳头出血指数以及对 HBM 问卷的回答。使用学生 t 检验和协方差分析检验组内和组间差异。
与对照组相比，干预组在随访时所有 HBM 领域均有所改善（p<0.001）。感知易感性的变化最大，而感知严重程度和感知益处的变化最小。干预组的牙乳头出血指数从基线到随访时发生显著变化（减少 0.7，95%CI=-0.9 至-0.5）。除了缺失牙外，DMFT 评分的所有成分在干预组也较对照组有所改善。然而，干预组和对照组之间的总 DMFT 评分没有显著差异。
基于 HBM 的教育计划可能比目前用于教育儿童及其家长最佳口腔健康行为的方法更有效。在小学儿童中，实施这种类型的干预以及其他基于学校的项目来预防龋齿可能会有所帮助。
