TY - JOUR
A1 - Shwetha, R
A1 - Latti, Pooja
A1 - Sharma, Rama
A1 - Patthi, Basavaraj
A1 - Hirekalmath, Sushanth
A1 - Sakeenabi, B
A1 - Prashant, G
A1 - Chandu, G
T1 - Knowledge and attitude of pharmacists regarding oral Health care and oral hygiene products in Davangere City, Karnataka, India
Y1 - 2011/7/1
JF - Journal of Indian Association of Public Health Dentistry
JO - J Indian Assoc Public Health Dent
SP - 441
EP - 446
VL - 9
IS - 5
UR - https://journals.lww.com/aphd/pages/default.aspx/article.asp?issn=2319-5932;year=2011;volume=9;issue=5;spage=441;epage=446;aulast=Shwetha
N2 - Background: Pharmacists have been regarded as the second most source of advice on general health matters they are the first port of call when people have oral symptoms, such as a toothache or mouth ulcers. There are a variety of ways by which the pharmacist can take a frontline approach to oral disease prevention, identification, assessment, management, and referral.
Objective: To assess the Knowledge and attitudes of pharmacists in Davangere city, India regarding oral health care and oral hygiene products.
Methodology: A cross-sectional survey among a sample of 106 pharmacists in Davangere city was done and data regarding their knowledge and attitudes towards oral health care and oral hygiene products were obtained using a closed-ended questionnaire. Chi square test was employed to analyze the significance in response in relation to independent variables.
Results: Among the 106 pharmacies approached, 56.6% of the participants gave a positive answer when asked whether they had met the dentist practicing close to their pharmacies. Most of the pharmacists stocked oral health-related products, which comprised 10-25% of their total stock. Of these products toothpaste was the most common (64.2%), followed by mouth rinses and toothpowder (15.1%). Toothache or painful teeth was the most common dental problem (76.4%) for which patients approached the pharmacists for advice. With regard to the advice given, 36.8% of the pharmacists asked the patient to consult a nearby dentist, 15.1% of the pharmacists dispensed antibiotics and painkillers without any referral. Many of them (39.6%) felt that lack of proper knowledge is a barrier to providing oral health care advice.
Conclusion: It is clear from the present study that pharmacists are presently an underutilized resource, and there is a definitive need to improve their training and access to information on available dental services.
ER -