Department of Oral Sciences, Sir John Walsh Research Institute, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.
Department of Public Health, University of Otago, Wellington, New Zealand.
Health Promot Int. 2022 Aug 1;37(4). doi: 10.1093/heapro/daac132.
To investigate a health promotion strategy to improve oral health among former refugees in New Zealand. Former refugees were recruited (n = 63) and answered a questionnaire about their oral home care, smoking, sugar consumption and use of dental services. Participants then joined either focus group sessions to co-design oral health educational material (n = 39) or to be dentally examined for oral hygiene, periodontal health, gingivitis and dental caries and receive motivational instructions to improve their oral health habits (n = 20). Health messages using dual-language leaflets (covering oral home care, smoking, diet and access to services) were subsequently individually delivered monthly to all participants via a mobile phone application. After 6 months, follow-up questionnaires were sent to all participants and those who had been dentally examined were re-examined. Half of those who did not brush twice daily at baseline (54.1%) had increased brushing to at least twice daily by follow-up; 76.9% of those who consumed sugary drinks at least twice daily, reduced their sugar intake. No smokers quit smoking, however, 52.4% reported reducing the number of cigarettes or engaging in smoking cessation activities. Among those who had been dentally examined, plaque scores, gingivitis and periodontal pocketing all decreased significantly. Culturally and linguistically tailored oral health promotion interventions led to improved oral health behaviours for this group of former refugees over a 6 months follow-up period. We expect this to not only improve the oral health quality of life for this population, but also reduce the burden on the health system.
调查一种促进健康的策略，以改善新西兰前难民的口腔健康。
招募前难民（n=63），并回答一份关于口腔家庭护理、吸烟、糖消耗和牙科服务使用情况的问卷。然后，参与者参加焦点小组会议，共同设计口腔健康教育材料（n=39），或接受口腔卫生、牙周健康、牙龈炎和龋齿检查，并接受改善口腔健康习惯的动机性指导（n=20）。使用双语传单（涵盖口腔家庭护理、吸烟、饮食和服务获取）的健康信息随后通过移动应用程序每月单独提供给所有参与者。6 个月后，向所有参与者发送随访问卷，并对接受牙科检查的参与者进行重新检查。
基线时每天刷牙两次以下的参与者中，有一半（54.1%）增加到每天至少刷牙两次；每天至少饮用两次含糖饮料的参与者中，有 76.9%减少了糖的摄入量。虽然没有吸烟者戒烟，但 52.4%的人报告减少了吸烟量或参与了戒烟活动。在接受牙科检查的参与者中，菌斑评分、牙龈炎和牙周袋均显著降低。
针对这组前难民的文化和语言适应性口腔健康促进干预措施，在 6 个月的随访期间，改善了他们的口腔健康行为。我们预计这不仅将提高这一人群的口腔健康生活质量，还将减轻卫生系统的负担。
