Oral Health in Hospitalized Pediatric Patients: Investigation Study

Introduction: A large number of hospitalised children present symptoms in their oral cavity due to the side effects of their disease/treatment, further aggravated by a lack of oral care at this stage. Objective: To characterize the knowledge of the caregivers about the oral health care to be adopted in children with regular medical care and during the hospitalization at the Hospital Dr. Nélio Mendonça, Funchal. Materials and Methods: The measuring instruments used were questionnaires given to caregivers for children attending the hospital between june and august 2017. Data analysis was done using the SPSS^®. Results: In the majority of the children it was found that there was no parental supervision during toothbrushing, as well the caregivers being unaware of the existence of complementary hygiene instruments. During the hospitalization, a reduction in brushing frequency was observed compared to the brushing performed at home. Discussion: The caregivers have demonstrated a poor perception of the repercussions that inadequate oral hygiene may cause, so this situation can be reversed with the presence of a Dentist as an integral part of the multidisciplinary hospital team. Conclusion: Inadequate knowledge about preventative methods constitutes a barrier to the oral health of these patients. In this context, both health professionals and those caregivers are not properly informed about the importance of oral health promotion. Clinical implications: The implementation of oral health education/promotion actions within the hospital environment represents a differentiating factor for the optimization of the health and quality of life of the systemically compromised pediatric population. Keywords: hospitalized child, oral health, oral health education, prevention, pediactric dentistry, preventive dentistry