Knowledge, attitude, and practice of dental flossing among non-dental health personnel

Abstract

Background: Tooth-brushing alone is reported as inadequate for removal of inter-dental plaque, indicating the need for adjunctive aids such as dental floss. Therefore, preventive dental health education, including the need for dental flossing has been regularly given among the various health personnel in the University College Hospital, Ibadan. Aim: To determine the knowledge, attitude and practice of dental flossing among non-dental health personnel. Materials and methods: A 22-item structured self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data regarding knowledge, attitude and practice of dental flossing among the non-dental health personnel of the University College Hospital, Ibadan. Ethical approval was obtained from UI/UCH Ethics Review Committee. The data was analyzed using Windows Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 21.0. Results: Two hundred and four participants were involved, out of which 114(55.9%) were females, and 90 (44.1 %) were males. The average age was 31 years. They included medical doctors, nurses, community health officers, medical laboratory scientists, surgeons, dieticians, pharmacists and physiotherapists. Response rate was 97%. Eighty-four percent of the participants were knowledgeable about dental flossing, with 74.0% using it to remove impacted food particles. Regarding participants attitude to dental flossing, all respondents thought it was a good habit, but only 66.7% think it is a simple habit. However, about 60% flossed daily, while the rest flossed occasionally. Conclusion: The knowledge, attitude and practice of denial flossing among non-dental health personnel of the University College Hospital, Ibadan is fair. However, regular denial flossing should be emphasized as mainly to remove inter-dental plaque, in order to prevent periodontal disease.