Evaluation of oral and dental health knowledge, behavior and awareness of hospitalized patients and their families in Ihsan Doğramaci Children's Hospital

Children hospitalized for various health problems are exposed to many factors that will adversely affect their oral health, which becomes more critical as the length of hospital stay increases. Because of the relationship between oral health and general health, especially immunocompromised pediatric patients are more susceptible to the consequences of poor oral health than healthy children. Parents have a fundamental role in monitoring children's oral care during hospitalization. The protection of oral health and the promotion of good oral hygiene practices are carried out with the help of trained health professionals, by taking preventive measures for oral health, and by providing necessary training and guidance to the parents who have the primary responsibility for the protection of the children's health. This study was planned to measure the knowledge, attitudes, and awareness of hospitalized pediatric patients and their parents about oral health and oral care. After obtaining ethical approval from the Local Ethics Committee of Hacettepe University, the data were collected through a questionnaire applied to the children and their families hospitalized in Hacettepe University İhsan Doğramacı Children's Hospital. The mean age of 412 children between 0-18 years was 9.23±5.12, and 54.1% were male. The highest reason for hospitalization was pneumonia, with 10.4%. The mean hospital stay was found to be 18.79 days. Among 73.3% of hospitalized children had at least one systemic disease, and 62.6% took at least one medication. The percentage of children having a toothbrush or disposable oral foam swabs, which was 91.7% at home, decreased to 49.5% in the hospital. The percentage of regular tooth brushing, which was 58.9% at home, decreased to 30.3% in the hospital. A significant relationship was found between their children's toothbrushing habits at home and the hospital, the mothers' education level, and the parents' toothbrushing habits. As a result, it was observed that hospitalization negatively affects children's oral care habits. For this reason, it is necessary to develop programs in which families, doctors, nurses working in the hospital, and pediatric dentists cooperate to improve the oral health of hospitalized patients and provide them with the proper oral care habits.