A Survey on Oral Hygiene Methods Practiced Amongst Patients Reporting Dentistry Department of IGIMS - A Tertiary Care Centre

Introduction: Good Oral hygiene is a necessity, lack of which results in a variety of different oral health problems. Preventive oral health knowledge, behavior and its practice are important ways of keeping our teeth healthy. Objectives: To assess the awareness and practices on oral hygiene methods amongst patients reporting to the outpatient department of dentistry of IGIMS, Patna. Materials and Methods: 546 children of age group 3-12 yrs were included in the study. Demographic details followed by detailed description on oral hygiene practices were recorded on a structured questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of patient name, age, sex, various dentifrices used, oral hygiene instruments used and frequency of brushing. Data obtained were statistically analyzed using Chi square and results were obtained. Results: It was found that the use of toothbrushes (61.2%), non-medicated pastes (69.6) were most common among males and females. Cleaning ?once? (67.2%), followed by ?twice? and ?more than twice? was the most commonly reported frequency, among both males and females. Conclusion: Lack of oral health awareness and hygiene practices amongst the children was found in the study which was unsatisfactory. There is much-needed niche for implementing oral health awareness and education to parents and children both.