Parental Awareness Of Congenital Missing Teeth In Children In The Aseer Region, Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: Congenitally missing teeth are the most common developmental dental anomaly that has profound functional and psychosocial consequences for the child, where parents' awareness is of great importance in early detection and timely interventions. Aim: The study was conducted to evaluate the awareness, perception, and knowledge of parents in the Aseer Region, Saudi Arabia, regarding CMT in children. Methods: This is a cross-sectional survey using a quantitative methodology conducted among 500 parents in the Aseer region; data on socio-demographics, CMT awareness, perceived causes, perceived severity, impacts, knowledge about treatments, and sources of information were gathered by means of an administered structured questionnaire. Data was analysed by descriptive statistics and chi-square tests. Results: This study demonstrated the presence of an enormous awareness gap; 52.6% of the parents reported never having heard of CMT while 49.2% were unaware that children could be born without permanent teeth. The general impression about the gravity of the condition is good; 78% gave ratings of 'very' and 'moderately' serious in total, while the effect of the condition on 'self-confidence' and 'pronunciation' is well-recognized (83 and 77%, respectively). A wide "action gap" is observed as only 29.6% had their children checked for CMT by a dentist. A significantly higher Awareness of university-educated parents compared  lower-educated subjects50.5% vs. 34.0%, p=0.002. Conclusion: A significant gap in awareness of CMT between parents residing in the Aseer region and a dire need for targeted public health educational campaigns. Implementation should be through professional dental routes and through digital media   to be able to catch a large number of parents and cast a wide net