000			03403nam a22002297a 4500
005			20251007121517.0
008			251007b |||||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
040			_eNLM
060			_aWU 480 _b00761
100			_aPrajapati, Dilip Dr.
245			_aEffectiveness of school nurses in the oral health promotion of 7-15 years old children: school based prospective cohort study
260			_aKathmandu, Nepal ; _bKathmandu University & Nepal Health Research Council (NHRC) ; _c2025.
300			_a50p.
500			_aIn partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master in Medical Research.
520			_aAbstract: Introduction: Gingival diseases and Dentla Caries in primary and permanent dentition is the global burden especially in low and middle income country. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of school nurses in promoting oral health among 7-15 years old school children in Nepal. Methods: A perspective cohort study was conducted among 324 students aged 7-15 years old from three different government schools with school nurses in Kavre district of Nepal. Oral health education and training was given to the school nurse from intervention group (IG) whereas no OHE training was provided to the semi intervention group (SIG) and control group (CG). One time oral health education was given to students from semi intervention group at the start of the study. Reinforced oral health education by School nurse was provided every week to the intervention group students till the end of the study. Baseline data and follow up data were collected after three months from three schools by expert dentists using mouth mirror and WHO probe to record dmft, DMFT, Turesky-Gilmore-Glickman modification of the Quingley-Hein plaque index and Gingival Index. Descriptive analysis and Wilcoxon sign rank test were used to for paired comparisons between the groups. Results: There was high prevalence of decayed tooth in both primary (48.9%) and permanent dentition (46.8%), with mean dmft 1.72 ± 2.29 and mean DMFT 1.19 ± 1.67. In oral hygiene practices, 52.9% brush their teeth occasionally (not regular) and 46.2% of them use non fluoridated tooth paste. There was significant reduction in the plaque score 2.06±0.63 to 1.50 ±0.54 in IG in compared to SIG 2.06 ± 0.68 to 2.02 ± 0.69 and 2.06±0.98 in CG. There is marked improve in the gingival bleeding score in IG from 3.4 ± 2.47 to 1.32 ± 1.20 whereas only slight changes are seen in SIG 4.94 ± 2.75 to 4.59 ± 2.662 and CG 3.97 ± 3.14 to 4.96 ± 3.18 (P <0.001). DMFT was increased in all the three groups but no significant difference was seen. Conclusion: School nurses plays significant role in improving gingival health of school children and can be effective in promoting oral health among the school children’s especially in the low and middle income country where there is no provision of school dental nurses. This study recommends to advocate for the development of integrated health and education policies that formally prioritize preventive school-based oral health programs through school nurses. Keywords: dental caries, gingival diseases, plaque, school nurse, school oral health
650			_aDental caries
650			_aGingival diseases
650			_aPlaque
650			_aSchool nurse
650			_aSchool oral health
942			_2NLM _cTR _kTHS00761-PRA-2025 _n0
999			_c3472 _d3472