Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2012, 9(10), 3454-3464; doi:10.3390/ijerph9103454
Article

Oral Care during Pregnancy: Attitudes of Brazilian Public Health Professionals

Renata Toledo Alves 1 email, Rosangela Almeida Ribeiro 2 email, Luciane Rezende Costa 3,* email, Claudio Rodrigues Leles 3 email, Maria do Carmo Matias Freire 4 email and Saul Martins Paiva 5 email
1 Estacio de Sa College, Avenida Presidente Joao Goulart, 600, Cruzeiro do Sul, Juiz de Fora, MG 30130-900, Brazil 2 Department of Social and Child Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Rua José Lourenço Kelmer, Bairro São Pedro, Juiz de Fora, MG 36036-900, Brazil 3 Department of Preventive and Restorative Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Federal University of Goias, Primeira Avenida, Setor Universitario, Goiania, GO 74605-220, Brazil 4 Department of Stomatological Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Federal University of Goias, Primeira Avenida, Setor Universitario, Goiania, GO 74605-220, Brazil 5 Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Avenida Antonio Carlos, 6627, Pampulha, Belo Horizonte, MG 31270-901, Brazil
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 6 August 2012; in revised form: 25 September 2012 / Accepted: 25 September 2012 / Published: 28 September 2012
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social and Environmental Determinants of Oral Health)
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Abstract: There is little information about health professionals’ behavior regarding oral health care during pregnancy. We evaluated attitudes of obstetricians/gynecologists, nurses, and dentists working at a public community service towards pregnant women’s oral health. Health professionals responded to a self-applied questionnaire. Cluster analysis identified two clusters of respondents; Chi-square, Student’s t test, and logistic regression were used to compare the two clusters in terms of the independent variables. Respondents were categorized into cluster 1 ‘less favorable’ (n = 159) and cluster 2 ‘more favorable’ (n = 124) attitudes. Professionals that had attended a residency or specialization program (OR = 2.08, 95% CI = 1.15–3.77, p = 0.016) and worked exclusively at the public service (OR = 2.15, 95% CI = 1.10–4.20, p = 0.025) presented more favorable attitudes. Obstetricians/gynecologists (OR = 0.22, 95% CI = 0.09–0.54, p = 0.001) and nurses (OR = 0.50, 95% CI = 0.29–0.86, p = 0.013) showed less favorable attitudes than dentists. Health care providers’ attitudes regarding pregnant women’s oral health were related to their occupation, qualification, and dedication to the public service.
Keywords: attitudes; health personnel; oral health; pregnancy

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Cite This Article

MDPI and ACS Style

Alves, R.T.; Ribeiro, R.A.; Costa, L.R.; Leles, C.R.; Freire, M.C.M.; Paiva, S.M. Oral Care during Pregnancy: Attitudes of Brazilian Public Health Professionals. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2012, 9, 3454-3464.

AMA Style

Alves RT, Ribeiro RA, Costa LR, Leles CR, Freire MCM, Paiva SM. Oral Care during Pregnancy: Attitudes of Brazilian Public Health Professionals. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2012; 9(10):3454-3464.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Alves, Renata Toledo; Ribeiro, Rosangela Almeida; Costa, Luciane Rezende; Leles, Claudio Rodrigues; Freire, Maria do Carmo Matias; Paiva, Saul Martins. 2012. "Oral Care during Pregnancy: Attitudes of Brazilian Public Health Professionals." Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 9, no. 10: 3454-3464.

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