Open AccessKnowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Pediatricians and Family Physicians about Early Childhood Caries in Riyadh City
Author(s) -
Navin Anand Ingle,
Mohammad Abdul Baseer,
Jamal A Alsanea,
Asma H Almeslet,
Fatima Alotaibi,
Talal Muteb Alshammari
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of oral health and community dentistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2230-7389
pISSN - 0973-7316
DOI - 10.5005/jp-journals-10062-0075
Subject(s) - medicine , family medicine , early childhood caries , oral health , early childhood , pediatrics , psychology , developmental psychology
Early childhood caries (ECC) has an impact on deciduous teeth of infants and children. Pediatricians and family physicians are often in a better position to evaluate children at an early age and are capable of assessing the oral health of children during regular visits. The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of ECC among pediatricians and family physicians in Riyadh region. Materials and methods A close-ended self-administered questionnaire was hand-circulated and mailed to pediatricians and family physicians in 5 tertiary hospitals in Riyadh (King Khalid University Hospital, King Saud Medical City, King Fahad Medical City, Prince Sultan Medical Military City, Security Forces Hospital) to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) about ECC. Results A total of 207 medical practitioners participated in the study. The mean KAP scores were compared across different categories by applying Kruskal Wallis tests. Pediatricians showed higher knowledge [5.05 vs 4.28, p = 0.000], attitude [2.38 vs 2.30, p = 0.565], and practice [4.0 vs 3.58, p = 0.003] scores toward early childhood caries compared to the family physicians. The mean knowledge and practice scores were significantly higher among pediatricians compared to the family physicians. However, no significant difference was observed in attitude scores. Conclusion Most of the physicians have knowledge regarding some aspects of early childhood caries but not the identification of early childhood caries. It is the need of the hour to formulate oral health information programs catering to both pediatricians and family physicians. How to cite this article Alshammari TM, Ingle NA, Baseer MA, et al . Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Pediatricians and Family Physicians about Early Childhood Caries in Riyadh City. J Oral Health Comm Dent 2020;14(2):54–61.