Exploring Dental Hygiene Practices among Removable and Fixed Prostheses Patients

Abstract

Aim or Purpose: The aim of this study was to explore awareness, knowledge, and dental hygiene practices among patients with prostheses at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) dental clinic. Materials and Methods: A survey using validated self-administered questionnaire was randomly distributed through a Google form to a total of 85 patients (male, n=31 and female, n=54) of removable (n= 48, 56.5%) and fixed prostheses (n=37, 43.5 %). Descriptive analysis was performed and Pearson chi square with P value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: All participants reported receiving instructions from their dentists regarding maintenance of good oral hygiene. Concerning patients' knowledge, 90.6% (n=77) stated that they knew unhygienic prostheses could be a source of oral infection. Many removable wearers cleaned their prostheses by brushing and soaking (60.4%). A small percentage (31.3%, n=15) reported wearing dentures day and night. 89.2% (n=33) of fixed prosthesis patients used special aids to clean prosthesis. Conclusions: Most of the patients had good knowledge and practice on dental hygiene. Despite this, the minority were still not complying with the good practice therefore dentists should emphasize a better practice among patients by reinforcement activity.