Evaluation of Awareness and Performance of Parents of Children with Cancer Regarding Oral and Dental Health

Background: Studies have shown the high prevalence of dental caries among children with cancer. Since parents’ awarenessaffects their children’s oral and dental health, this study was conducted to investigate the awareness and performance of parents ofchildren with cancer regarding oral and dental health.Methods: This descriptive-analytical epidemiological study was conducted on the parents of ۳-۱۳-year-old normal (n = ۱۱۰) andcancer-case (n = ۱۱۰) children in Ahvaz, Iran, during the fall of ۲۰۲۲. In this study, a researcher-made questionnaire was used.Pearson’s correlation coefficient and regression analysis were utilized to investigate the relationship between awareness andperformance. The data were analyzed by SPSS software version ۲۴, and the significance level was P < ۰.۰۵.Results: Parents of normal children were more aware of oral and dental hygiene, but it is not statistically significant (P-value = ۰.۳۱۳< ۰.۰۵). The results related to measuring parental performance showed that parents of normal children have a higher performancelevel than parents of cancer children, which is significant (P-value = ۰.۰۰۰ < ۰.۰۵).Conclusions: The awareness and performance of parents of children with cancer regarding their children’s oral and dental healthwere insufficient. Therefore, parents’ information should be increased in various ways, and children should be referred to a dentistbased on a regular plan for preventive and therapeutic goals

کلیدواژه ها:

Dental Care ، Children ، Neoplasms ، Oral Health ، Parents ، Questionnaires Survey