Knowledge of parents about oral health in children with heart diseases

Transient bacteremia in dentistry is discussed as an important causative factor in bacterial endocarditis. The aim of this study was evaluate the knowledge of importance of dental caries prevention in parents whose children had heart disease. In this descriptive cross sectional study a simple consecutive sampling was used and 320 parents (125 fathers, 195 mothers) referred to the heart clinics of Zahedan were evaluated by a questionnaire. Questions were about the demographic information and their knowledge about oral health and it's relation to heart diseases. Data were analyzed using Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests. The results showed that the mean of their knowledge was 21.3±10.1 of 100. The father's knowledge (24.4±8.7) was higher compared to the mothers (19.23±10.3). The knowledge rural families were more than the urban families (22.5±9.8 and 14.51±9.1 respectively). Our findings showed limited knowledge of the parents about the interactions between oral hygiene and the risk bacterial endocarditis. [ZJRMS, 12(3):39-43]