Mothers as facilitators of oral hygiene in early childhood

Background. Toothbrushing twice daily is a recommended component of oral self‐care soon after the eruption of primary dentition. Aim. This study aims to investigate oral hygiene and frequency of oral cleaning in children up to 3 years, in relation to mother‐related factors. Design. A cross‐sectional study of 504 children aged 12–36 months in Tehran, Iran was implemented. Mothers answered questions about their own oral self‐care and their activity in their children's oral hygiene. The child's oral hygiene was assessed on the basis of visible dental plaque on the labial surfaces of the upper central incisors. Data analysis included chi‐square test, analysis of variance (anova) and logistic regression. Results. Twice daily oral cleaning was reported for 5% of all children and once daily cleaning for 19% of the 12‐ to 15‐month‐old children, 18% of the 16‐ to 23‐month‐old children, and 48% of the 24‐ to 36‐month‐old children. Of the mothers, 59% stated that they lacked the skill to clean their children's teeth. Dental plaque was observed in 65–76% of the children. Clean teeth were more likely (OR = 1·7, 95% CI 1.3–2.3) in children of mothers who themselves have a higher toothbrushing frequency. Conclusions. To improve oral hygiene in early childhood, more emphasis should be placed on mothers’ own toothbrushing and their skills in their children's oral cleaning.