Awareness, Attitude and Practices of Gynecologists Regarding Oral Diseases in Expectant Mothers

Abstract

Aim- Oral diseases can make pregnancy and childbirth more difficult, and this can also have an impact on the baby's health. Such issues can be avoided if dentists and gynecologists work together in a well-coordinated interdisciplinary approach. So, the study was aimed to evaluate the awareness, attitude, and practice of gynecologists regarding oral disease prevention in expectant mothers.

Material and Method- In Dahod district, a cross-sectional study was performed by using a standardized questionnaire that had been pre-designed, pilot tested and distributed among gynaecologists. The questionnaire asked about dental caries, gingivitis, and malocclusion risk factors, attitudes toward regular dental visits, the position of gynecologists, and their desire to be a part of an interdisciplinary approach to prevent oral diseases. The participants were given enough time to complete the survey. SPSS 23.0 software was used to create the descriptive statistics.

Results- Most of (85.5%) participants identified poor oral hygiene as a risk factor for dental caries and maximum (93.9 %) accepted referral their patients to dentists. Just 68.7% of participants examined their patients' oral cavities, and almost half of those surveyed said they would refer their patients to a dentist during the first trimester.

Conclusion- Gynecologists appear to have a good understanding of oral diseases. Their attitudes regarding the prevention of oral diseases were positive, but their practice in this area could really need some improvement.