Impact of dental education on oral hygiene practices and periodontal health in dental students and their siblings

Aims: To assess the level of knowledge and attitude of dental students and their siblings towards oral health; their oral hygiene and periodontal status; and also to evaluate the effect of dental education on the same. Materials and Methods: 80 participants were selected and divided into 4 groups as follows- Group A - 1st year BDS students, Group B - Siblings of group A participants, Group C - Final year BDS students, Group D - Siblings of group C participants. Each participant's oral hygiene and periodontal status was assessed using the Oral Hygiene Index-simplified (OHI-S; Greene and Vermilion 1964) and Community Periodontal Index (CPI; WHO); and their oral hygiene practices and attitudes were assessed using a questionnaire with close end questions. The collected data was subjected to statistical evaluation to assess the impact of dental education on their oral hygiene practices and periodontal health. Results: There were significant differences between OHI-S & CPI scores, knowledge & attitude of final year dental students as compared to other groups; but no significant differences were observed amongst the first year students and siblings of both the groups. Conclusion: This study showed that dental education did have an impact on the level of individual knowledge and attitude but this was not passed on to the siblings.