Factors contributing to dental caries at Kamuzu Central Hospital dental clinic

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Date
2009-11-01
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Kamuzu University of Health Sciences
Abstract
The study was conducted with an aim of finding out factors that are contributing to dental caries in spite of the strategies that are there. Many studies have been done on prevalence and risk factors but what had not been was why the problem is continuing. The study addressed knowledge of the causes, life-styles of participants, socioeconomic status, home remedies used in treating teeth problems and for how long people wait before accessing professional care. "The study was conducted at Kamuzu Central Hospital Dental Clinic. Thirty participants were enrolled in the study; fifteen males and fifteen females using ten men, using random sampling technique. A questionnaire was used in a face-to-face interview to collect data from the respondents. To ensure reliability of the questionnaire, a pilot study was conducted on four people at Bwaila Dental Clinic. To be ethical, permission was sought from the Director of Kamuzu Central Hospital and to conduct the study. Informed consent was sought from the study participants as well. Privacy was maintained by conducting the interview in a private room. The questionnaires had code numbers and no names to ensure anonymity. The data collected was analysed manually using descriptive statistics. The findings were plotted on graphs, pie charts and tables. The results showed that a lot of people lack knowledge on oral care, some lack finances to buy tooth paste and that some people are suffering from dental caries due to lack of self care especially on life styles. It has been recommended to intensify health education to the communities on good oral care and to encourage people to engage in income generating activities so as to make tooth paste affordable. The results will be communicated to the relevant stakeholders by writing a report which will be at Kamuzu College of Nursing library.
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