Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess: (1) oral health knowledge and practices of pediatricians and pediatrics residents in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; (2) their adherence to American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) guidelines for caries-risk assessment and anticipatory guidance; and (3) the barriers that prevent their adherence to these guidelines.
Methods: Participants completed a questionnaire comprised of three sections: (1) demographic and professional characteristics; (2) oral health knowledge and practices; and (3) adherence to AAP oral health guidelines and barriers against adherence. The association between knowledge and practices scores and demographic and professional characteristics was assessed using Mann Whitney and Kruskal Wallis tests.
Results: One-third of 1,261 pediatricians and pediatrics residents returned complete questionnaires. The mean +/-(standard deviation [SD]) knowledge score was 5.0 +/- 2.4 (out of 12), and the mean +/-(SD) practice score was 13.4 +/- 5.4 (out of 26). Only 8.3 percent reported following the AAP oral health guidelines, and the barriers against this included lack of awareness (60.9 percent), inadequate training on oral health (28.1 percent), and lack of time (21.6 percent).
Conclusion: Most pediatricians and pediatrics residents in Riyadh had inadequate oral health knowledge and practices as well as poor adherence to the AAP guidelines. Unfamiliarity with the guidelines was reported to be the main barrier against following them.