Effectiveness of oral health education programs: A systematic review

Effectiveness of oral health education programs: A systematic review
Oral health education is effective in improving the knowledge attitude and practice regarding oral health and in reducing the plaque, bleeding on probing of the gingival and caries increment and in improving the gingival health.
The present review throws light on the effectiveness of oral health education programs and identifies important variables which contribute to the effectiveness of these programs.
This review has shown that oral health education is effective in improving the knowledge and oral health related practices of the target population when significant others are involved, thus involvement of significant others like teachers and parents especially in oral health education of school children would bring about a higher quantum of change in improving the oral health in children.
Including an oral prophylaxis component in oral health education programs would bring about a higher quantum of improvement in the gingival health. Since oral health promotion programs have shown to be more effective than just oral health education, this approach should be adopted for bringing about an improvement in the target population, in such programs health promotion commits us not only to improving lifestyles but also to improving the environment in which lifestyle choices can be made.
There is indication in this review that the most successful oral health programs are labor intensive, have involved significant others and have received funding and additional support. A balance between inputs and outputs and health care resources available will determine if the program can be recommended for general use.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4000911/