Assessment of awareness amongst school teachers regarding prevention and emergency management of dentoalveolar traumatic injuries in school children in Pune city, before and 3 months after dental educational program

Abstract

Children have boundless energy, so, they are continuously engaged in some or the other physical activity. It is seen that when child reaches school age, accidents in the school environment in the form of falls, injuries due to contact sports, fights, abuse, etc. are very common and the main cause of traumatic dental injuries. Trauma may vary from minor enamel chipping or avulsion to extensive maxillofacial damage, more serious neck and brain injury, which may cause pain, disfigurement and mental agony, having immediate and long lasting effects. In such cases, a school teacher is in the right position to handle such an emergency and refer the child to the concerned dental surgeon or a pedodontist for further needful care. The main reason for delayed treatment of dental trauma is that people present at the site of injury are unaware of protocol of rapid and appropriate management leading to improper first aid treatment. The purpose of this study was to investigate the awareness of a group of school teachers from different schools about the prevention and emergency management of dental trauma in school children, by means of a questionnaire. Then educating them and reassessing their knowledge after a period of 3 months. Unfortunately, the public is unaware of the risks and does not have enough information about first aid emergency treatment or to avoid traumatic injuries.