Knowledge and practices regarding caries prevention among Korean pregnant women

Objectives: Korea is experiencing an increase in dental caries among children. The purpose of this study was to access the knowledge and opinions of caries prevention among gravid Korean women. Methods: A pre-tested questionnaire consisting of 20 items was used to interview 330 (primiparae=181; multimiparae=149) pregnant women who were selected randomly from participants attending prenatal health education courses. Questionnaires were completed by a trained interviewer during the face-to-face interviews. Results: In general, most respondents were very concerned about their children’s oral health. However, 58% of the women were unaware of early childhood caries and the proportion was significantly higher among primipara (P<0.05). Eighty-two percent of the respondents reportedly believed that the fetus takes away calcium from the mother’s teeth during pregnancy. Much of their misinformation was attributed to both traditional beliefs and advertisements from the manufacturers of infant dry milk. Conclusions: These data demonstrate that there is a relatively low level of accurate knowledge regarding infant nutrition, maternal need for oral health and dental caries prevention among Korean pregnant women. Oral health education and promotion programs that are science-based are needed for these women.