Periodontal health awareness and behavior among Iraqi university lecturers in non medical colleges

Abstract

A positive correlation between periodontal health and the level of education have been documented, however, the relationship between education level and periodontal health awareness and related health behavior have not been thoroughly considered.Aim of the study: aim of the present study is to estimate the periodontal health awareness and behavior among Iraqi university lecturers in non medical colleges. and to correlate the findings in the light of their level of education. Materials and methods: a population Sample of 352 university lecturers (176 females & 176 males) from different non medical colleges in Baghdad city has been randomly selected for this research. They were asked to complete a self assessment questionnaire designed for the estimation of periodontal health awareness and behavior . this questionnaire has three domains with 19 questions.Results: one of the most important finding of this study is the low percentage (27%) of the sample whom attribute periodontal diseases to bacteria , the results also showed that (47.4%) of them consider the bleeding on brushing as an indication of presence of periodontal disease, (47.7%) of the participants brush their teeth twice a day, (24.2%) of them have use the Floss & picks as an additional daily measures, only (26.1%) of them regularly visit their dentists, about half of the participants (52.8%) were satisfied by the dental health services provided by public and private clinics in Iraq and (82.4%) of them think that the cost of dental treatment in Iraq is too high. Conclusions: Results of this research revealed that acceptable percentages of the sample for both genders have the basic knowledge required for maintaining proper periodontal health, but these percentages are still far from that expected for this high social class. On the other hand, most of the participants seem to be satisfied with the dental health services that was provided by public and private sectors in Iraq . However, the majority of them think that the cost of dental treatment in Iraq is too high.