MONDAY, Feb. 1 (HealthDay News) -- Parents who seek oral health care for themselves are more likely to do the same for their children, according to a study published online Feb. 1 in Pediatrics; while another study found that Web-based training (WBT) and hands-on training (HOT) can help pediatricians incorporate preventive oral health care into primary care visits.
Nasreen Talib, M.D., of the Children's Mercy Hospital and Clinics in Kansas City, Mo., and colleagues conducted a study of 56 pediatric residents who were randomized to receive HOT by a dentist plus WBT in preventive oral health, or WBT alone. The researchers found that, while both methods improved pediatricians' knowledge, efficacy and practice of oral health care, those who also had HOT demonstrated improved oral examination skills overall.
Inyang A. Isong, M.D., of the Massachusetts General Hospital for Children in Boston, and colleagues analyzed data on 6,107 parent-child pairs and found that, compared to children whose parents did not have regular visits to the dentist, those whose parents had visited the dentist within the previous 12 months were 3.36 times more likely to have seen a dentist.
"Parental oral health-seeking behaviors for themselves may have an important effect on oral health-seeking behaviors on behalf of their children, regardless of the child's insurance status," Isong and colleagues write.
Abstract - Talib
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Abstract - Isong
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