Knowledge of the employees of an institution about dental care during pregnancy

Abstract

There are many beliefs, taboos and myths about dental care in pregnancy. OBJECTIVE: to evaluate the collaborators' knowledge about oral changes and the need for dental treatment during pregnancy. METHODOLOGY: This was a cross-sectional study. Active female collaborators who worked at the educational institution in 2017 were included in the study. Collaborators who were absent from college at the time were excluded from the study. The data were collected through an interview through an individual questionnaire composed of objective questions that addressed the knowledge of female collaborators, performed by a single evaluator, then a descriptive analysis of the data was performed, presenting them with absolute values and percentages. RESULTS: Ninety-six female collaborators participated in the survey (response rate 88.9%). It was found that only 25% correctly answered all the questions. 58.3% answered that pregnancy caused problems in the teeth. The most cited problem was dental sensitivity. Among those who answered that some procedure could be performed, the most reported procedure was tooth cleaning (91.7%). CONCLUSION: It is possible for pregnant women to undergo dental treatments. Difficulties are still encountered in the dental care of pregnant women.