Investigating Parental Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding Dental Caries Prevention in Adolescents

Feili, Fahimeh; Roozegar, Mohamad Ali

doi:10.48309/ijashss.2025.558005.1258

Investigating Parental Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding Dental Caries Prevention in Adolescents

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Fahimeh Feili ¹

Mohamad Ali Roozegar ²

¹ Department of Dentistry, Ilam University of Medical sciences, Ilam, Iran

² Associate Professor of Anesthesiology Department of Anesthesiology, School of Allied Medical Sciences, Ilam University of Medical sciences, Ilam, Iran

https://doi.org/10.48309/ijashss.2025.558005.1258

Abstract

Dental caries is an infectious disease resulting from the destruction of calcified tooth structures and is recognized as one of the most commonly experienced diseases among the general population. The aim of this investigation is to asses parental knowledge regarding the prevention of caries in adolescents. This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2025. A total of 150 parents of children aged between 12 and 18 years residing in Ilam city and its surrounding villages were enrolled. In the initial phase, four schools were selected from Ilam County, and the parents of the students were sampled using random sampling techniques. Upon data collection, the information was entered into SPSS version 21. Results showed that 50% of parents were male, 48.7% had education below diploma, 53.3% were employmed, 74% of parents lived in the city, and 50% of parents had average economic status. The findings indicated that the mean (SD) parental knowledge score was 12.5 (3.24), attitude score was 20.81 (2.94), and the practices score was 5.74 (1.46). Additionally, the results showed, there was a relationship between educational status and KAP score, and the M(SD) of KAP score being higher in individuals with higher education than in those with lower education. Moreover, parents who had more children reported higher knowledge and attitude scores. It is recommended that educational interventions be implemented to improve parents’ KAP scores.

Keywords

Knowledge

Attitude and Practices

Dental Caries

Subjects

Healthcare

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