Oral health knowledge, attitude, and practice of pregnant women in Deccan, South India: a cross-sectional prenatal survey

Perceptions and determinants of oral health care among Iranian pregnant women: a qualitative study

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to gain a comprehensive understanding of the determinants that influence oral healthcare behaviours among Iranian pregnant women.

STUDY DESIGN

Qualitative study.

SETTING

Comprehensive health service centres.

PARTICIPANTS

A sample consisting of all people involved in the process of oral care during pregnancy, 18 pregnant women, 7 midwives/healthcare workers, 3 supervisors of prenatal care services and 3 dentists) were purposefully sampled in terms of demographic characteristics.

METHODS

The qualitative content analysis study conducted 31 semistructured individual interviews in 2022, utilising MAXQDA V.10.

RESULTS

The participants identified 3 main categories and 11 subcategories: individual and physiological determinants (care needs, perceived importance, motivation, oral health literacy and inherent pregnancy limitations), organisational determinants (costs, access to equipment and services, review of service delivery process and professional behaviour) and social-cultural determinants (educational services and support from family and friends).

CONCLUSIONS

The results can be used in interventions to improve oral healthcare for pregnant women. This study highlights the importance of addressing individual, organisational and social-cultural determinants to improve oral healthcare during pregnancy.

Unfavourable beliefs about oral health and safety of dental care during pregnancy: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Oral conditions such as gingivitis and periodontitis are correlated with adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preeclampsia, preterm birth and low birth weight. Oral health-related unfavourable beliefs can have negative influences on oral health behaviours including hesitation in accessing preventative dental treatments and dental service utilization. The objective of this systematic review was to examine unfavourable beliefs that expectant or new mothers frequently hold about oral health and the safety of dental care during pregnancy.

METHODS

An electronic database search on PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL, and MEDLINE (Ovid) followed by forward and backward citation tracing of the included studies was conducted. All English primary studies regardless of the year of publication were independently screened by two reviewers to identify studies addressing unfavourable beliefs about oral health and dental care during pregnancy. The CLARITY tool was applied to assess the risk of bias in the included studies.

RESULTS

Out of a total of 5766 records, 39 quantitative and six qualitative studies met the inclusion criteria. The commonly held unfavourable beliefs were regarding the safety of dental services utilization and dental treatment procedures, the adverse impacts of pregnancy on oral health, and oral hygiene necessity during pregnancy. The most discussed unfavourable beliefs included "pregnant women lose their teeth because of pregnancy" (n = 18), "dental treatments are not safe and harm the fetus" (n = 17), and "the developing baby absorbs calcium from the mother's teeth" (n = 14).

CONCLUSIONS

Unfavourable beliefs about oral health and dental care utilization are common among pregnant women and new mothers. The literature suggests that a low level of oral health knowledge and seeking information from social networks can contribute to such beliefs. This has implications for health promotion.