Introducing infant oral health into dental curricula: a clinical intervention

Although pediatric dentists are trained to address the oral health needs of young children, few general practitioners receive this training in dental school. The purpose of this study was to evaluate change in dental students' knowledge, confidence, opinions, and behaviors following a curricular intervention in infant and toddler oral health. Using a pre- and post-survey study design, forty-five intervention and forty-one control group students participated in the study. The intervention consisted of a three-hour seminar, followed by three or four clinical sessions. Descriptive statistics and analysis of covariance were used to compare the average scores of the two groups after adjusting for pre-construct scores. The response rate was 84 percent. The mean scores of the control and intervention groups did not differ significantly for any of the constructs at baseline (p>.14). Bivariate analysis showed the average post-scores differed significantly (p<.01) in the control and intervention groups for all constructs after adjusting for pre-scores. Similar findings occurred in the regression modeling, with previous experience caring for young children, ability to speak Spanish, and gender influencing the outcomes. Eighty-eight percent of the students enrolled in the intervention stated they were more likely to treat children in this age group following this clinical experience.