Evaluation of Parents's Awareness of Eruption of the First Permanent Molar Tooth and Caries Prevention Methods in Individuals Referring to Health Centers in Qom City, 2017 (Iran)

Permanent molar teeth are of great importance in the dental system and usually erupt without any complications at the age of 6-7 years. The aim of the present study was to determine parents’ awareness of eruption of the first permanent molar tooth and caries prevention methods in individuals referring to health centers in Qom city.
This cross-sectional study was performed on 259 parents referring to the health centers in Qom city using multistage cluster sampling. Data were collected using a questionnaire on awareness about the first permanent molar tooth and caries prevention methods. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistical indicators and Chi square test.
The mean age of the participants (±SD), were 37.40±8.62 and 60.6% of them, were female. Of the parents, 27.4% and 39% responded correctly to the questions about the age and the location of eruption of the first permanent molar tooth, respectively, and 27 and 40.5% of the participants were, respectively, were aware of fissure sealant method and fluoride therapy. There was a significant relationship between parental awareness of the age and location of first permanent molar eruption, and dental caries prevention methods with parent’s educational level and job. Parents with history of child dental visit in the recent year, had significantly higher awareness of the age, location of first permanent molar eruption, fissure sealant method, and fluoride therapy.
Based on the results of the present study, parents had low awareness of the first permanent molar eruption and had moderate awareness of fissure sealant method and fluoride therapy. Therefore, it is recommended to design appropriate training programs in order to improve parental knowledge about the age and location of the first permanent molar tooth eruption as well as the caries prevention methods