الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract Introduction: Dental decay is the most common childhood disease worldwide; most of decay remains untreated particularly in developing countries affecting the growth and wellbeing of millions of children. Purpose of this study is to assess the effect of dental caries on the growth of first and second grade primary school children. Subjects & Method: Design: descriptive cross sectional study design was used to fulfill the aim of the study. Sample: systematic random sample of 400 students from different primary school, 1st and 2nd grade were selected. Setting: this study was conducted in primary school in Samannoud distrect. Tools for data collection: 1) an interviewing questionnaire was used to collect socio-demographic data, assess knowledge, attitude and practice of children regarding dental care. 2) Biophysiological measurements were used to assess body growth; children’s height, weight & body mass index. The main results: revealed that: the majority 80% of the studied sample reported that they have dental caries. Regarding student’s knowledge about proper use of tooth brush, 61.3% of children with no dental caries answer correctly, compared to 23,8 % of children with dental caries. Also half of studied children who have dental caries did not use tooth brush correctly. Children growth illustrates a statistical significant difference in BMI of children with caries was 17.36 ± 2.46 whereas for children without caries 21.63 ± 2.85 . Conclusion: the body weight, height, and body mass index of the studied primary school children with caries were less than with no dental caries. Recommendations: 1. Screenings of school children for early detection of children with dental caries and treating them.. 2. Heath education about oral hygiene to prevent dental caries. 3. An effective school health program could be the most cost effective investments for improving education and oral health. |