Knowledge and Attitude of the Care Staff Working in Children's Homes About Avulsed Teeth: Cross-Sectional Survey

Abstract

Background: The knowledge and first-aid skills of care staff working in children's homes in cases of dental avulsion-defined as the complete displacement of a tooth from its alveolar socket- can significantly influence the prognosis of the affected tooth. This study aims to evaluate the knowledge and attitudes of care staff in children's homes regarding the management of avulsed teeth. Material and Methods: The study included 118 participants, 62 women and 56 men, working as care staff in 3 different children's homes of Samsun Provincial Directorate of Social Services. The questionnaire was divided into three sections with a total of 18 questions: demographic information, knowledge and attitudes toward avulsion, and interventions for avulsion injuries. For the frequency data Chi-Square Independency test and Fisher's exact test for 2 x 2 tables were used. For the total score data, the Mann-Whitney U test and Kruskal-Wallis H test were used. The level of significance was set at p < 0.05 for all statistical tests. Hierarchical cluster analysis was applied to create a dendrogram using the nearest neighbor method and squared Euclidean distance. Results: Majority of the participants stated that dental trauma is an emergency and they need to learn how to deal with it. Three quarters of the participants stated that they would be better able to help with dental trauma after receiving a short and relevant training. Unfortunately, only 3.4% correctly stated that a permanent tooth should be replaced in the event of an avulsion. Thirty-seven point 3% of the participants preferred to keep the avulsed tooth in a napkin, and 63.6% suggested keeping it in tap water while taking it to the dentist. The correct option, milk, was preferred by only 8.5%. Conclusion: Care staff working in children's homes have insufficient knowledge about the management of permanent dental avulsion.