HYGIENIC LITERACY OF PARENTS OF CHILDREN UNDERGOING ORTHODONTIC TREATMENT DURING THE MIXED BITE PERIOD

The subject of the research is the hygienic literacy of parents whose children are undergoing orthodontic treatment. Objective of the Study: To assess the level of awareness among parents of children undergoing orthodontic treatment regarding the role of oral hygiene and their competence in following the orthodontist's recommendations. Materials and Methods: The study included 52 parents whose children are undergoing orthodontic treatment with removable appliances. Information was collected through a survey using a developed questionnaire. Results: For 87.6 ±6.2 % of respondents, the orthodontist was the source of information about oral hygiene and appliance care. Despite each patient and their parents receiving recommendations, only 56.7 ±9.0 % of participants implemented them in practice. At the same time, only 83.3 ±6.8 % of participants believe that oral hygiene practices should change after starting to wear an appliance. All participants were confident in the necessity of cleaning the orthodontic appliance. However, only 66.7 ±8.6 % of parents were aware of the existence of special cleaning agents, and only 40 ±8.9 % used them in practice. More than half of the respondents use a combination of toothbrush and toothpaste. Negative changes in the appliance itself during wear were noted by 43.3 % of parents. A scoring of the survey results indicated that more than half of the participants scored between 31 and 35 points, demonstrating a satisfactory level of awareness. Conclusions: Parents of children undergoing orthodontic treatment with removable appliances generally demonstrated a satisfactory level of hygiene literacy. However, despite good theoretical awareness, children and their parents do not apply this knowledge properly in practice. Therefore, health education activities should be developed for legal guardians and the patient themselves, focusing on practicing manual skills and motivating the application of this knowledge in daily life.