Conhecimento de Médicos e Enfermeiros sobre saúde bucal na primeira infância.

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to verify the perception of doctors and nurses that are inserted in the Family Health Strategy, in Patos city, Paraiba, in relation to oral health of children 0 to 36 months old. Material and Methods: This essay was based in a transverse and observational study where, as data collection apparatus, it was used a specific questionnaire. 63 professionals, 28 doctors and 35 nurses, composed the sample. After being collected, data was elaborated by descriptive statistic and then summited to the Fisher`s exact statistic test, being considered meaningful to the level of 5% (p<0,05). Results: Regarding the knowledge about odontology prevention, the majority of the professionals (96.8%) consider dental caries as disease and relate its appearance to the absence of hygiene and inadequate nutrition. In addition, 46% of the professionals do not know how the dental biofilm is removed in children (0-36 months old) and 71.4% reported that fluoride might avoid dental caries. Furthermore, 65.1% of the professionals comprehend that the first visit to the dentist should be before the primary teeth appear and 76.2% said that the deciduous tooth can be treated. It was observed a significant statistically difference between the variables “oral health orientation” and gender (p=0, 04), where the majority of the male gender reported have not had oral health orientation. Conclusion: It is concluded that there is a fragility in the knowledge about oral health in early childhood, which makes the training of these classes very important and make the work more integrated, with an effective exchange of knowledge and practices.