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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
medicine
Do life- or school-satisfaction and self-esteem indicators explain the oral hygiene habits of schoolchildren?
Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology, Volume 35, No. 5, Year 2007
Notification
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Description
Objectives: The aim of this study was to ascertain how frequently toothbrushing and flossing are practiced among schoolchildren in Kuwait and whether life- and school-satisfaction and self-esteem indicators are associated with oral hygiene habits. Methods: A sample of 2312 schoolchildren between 11 and 13 years old filled out a structured questionnaire anonymously in school classrooms during 2002 and 2003. For this study, nationally representative samples of children were drawn from all six governorates of Kuwait. Only government schools were included. The questionnaire of the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children Study was used in this study after it was modified to suit Kuwait. A chi-squared test and logistic regression model were used for analyzing the data. Results: Over half of the pupils reported brushing their teeth more than once a day; girls reported brushing more frequently than boys did. One-fifth of the pupils did not brush their teeth even on a daily basis. The life- and school-satisfaction and self-esteem indicators were associated with more-than-once-a-day toothbrushing frequency. The strongest predictors for recommended brushing were: feeling very happy (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.38-2.77), feeling that other pupils always accept him/her (1.5; 1.16-2.02), never/sometimes feeling lonely and feeling that it is very easy to make friends (1.4; 1.06-1.94). The summary variables of life-satisfaction, school-satisfaction and self-esteem seemed to be strongly associated with brushing. Dental floss was never used by 45% of the children, weekly by 18% and daily by 17%; 20% did not even know what dental floss was. Conclusions: Among intermediate schoolchildren in Kuwait, oral hygiene practices were far behind the international recommendations. Special emphasis should be placed on children who have personal problems with their life, school and self-esteem. © 2007 The Authors. Journal compilation 2007 Blackwell Mungsgard.
Authors & Co-Authors
Honkala, Sisko
Kuwait, Kuwait City
Kuwait University
Finland, Helsinki
Kajaaninlinnantie 1e36
Honkala, Eino J.
Kuwait, Kuwait City
Kuwait University
Norway, Tromso
Uit Norges Arktiske Universitet
Al-Sahli, N.
Kuwait, Kuwait City
Kuwait University
Statistics
Citations: 67
Authors: 3
Affiliations: 3
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1111/j.1600-0528.2006.00326.x
ISSN:
03015661
e-ISSN:
16000528
Research Areas
Health System And Policy
Maternal And Child Health
Participants Gender
Male
Female