Oral health advice: reported experience of mothers of children aged 5 years and under referred for extraction of teeth under general anaesthesia.

AIMS

To examine the reported receipt of oral health education among mothers of children who required the extraction of teeth under general anaesthesia.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study using questionnaires completed at interview.

SAMPLE

150 mothers of children aged 5 or younger who had been referred for extraction of teeth under general anaesthesia.

SETTING

Dental School, University of Wales College of Medicine.

RESULTS

27% of mothers recalled receiving advice from their dentist about dental care during their pregnancy. With regard to their child's oral health, 48% had received dietary advice and 31% oral hygiene advice from the same source. All children lived in areas with suboptimal water fluoride levels; 27% of mothers had been advised by their dentist to give their child fluoride supplements. Few of the mothers recalled receiving advice about oral health from their health visitor.