What is the knowledge and practice of European dental hygienists concerning use of dental sealants for management of occlusal caries?

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to understand the knowledge and practice of European dental hygienists in the use of preventive measures. In particular, it is focused on the use of materials that are made from either resin or glass ionomer known as dental sealants, which are applied to pits and fissures to prevent and arrest occlusal caries. The research question: What is the knowledge and practice of European dental hygienists concerning use of dental sealants for management of occlusal caries? Methodology: The study is a descriptive cross-sectional quantitative type. The sample consists of European dental hygienists from 6 European countries who are English speaking. The data required was collected via an online questionnaire which was sent to the participants through their dental hygiene associations. The questionnaire included the following sections: research information, consent, demographic data, knowledge and practice. Results and Conclusions: European dental hygienists in this study have shown that they have sufficient knowledge on the use of dental sealants and are aware of their benefits and the evidence involved on their use. Irrespective of reduced uptake of certain practices, in entirety, they show high engagement in good practices to manage occlusal caries. Recommendations and Implications for Practice: It is recommended to carry out this research with a larger sample size for the results to be truly representative of the European dental hygienists and to be calculated mathematically using power analysis. This would enable the results to be generalisable and to further gain insight on the knowledge and practice of European dental hygienists on the use of dental sealants and to have definitive statistical significance of results. This study could be expanded to include the barriers faced by European dental hygienists in the practice of dental sealants to bridge the evidence-practice gap.