A SCHOOL-BASED ORAL HEALTH EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM: THE EXPERIENCE OF MARINGA- PR, BRAZIL PROGRAMA EDUCACIONAL EM SAÚDE BUCAL BASEADO EM ESCOLAS: A EXPERIÊNCIA DE MARINGÁ- PR, BRASIL

he main purpose of this study was to evaluate the preliminary results of a school-based oral health educationalstrategy adopted in public primary schools from the city of Maringa, State of Parana, Brazil. The study samplewas composed by 556 children and adolescents aged 6 to 17 years old, 124 schoolteachers and a group of 55mothers. The educational approach was implemented for 18 months and consisted of reinforcements of interventionsaddressed to students and schoolteachers at school level and few activities targeted at the mothers, performed bymeans of home visits. Baseline and follow-up interviews focused on oral health care were undertaken for the entirestudy population. As a stimulus for the students to achieve proper oral hygiene habits, the simplified oral hygieneindex was assessed at three different moments. A statistically significant improvement in their oral hygiene index(p<0.001) was recorded. The results achieved suggest an encouraging tendency towards the improvement in thelevels of oral health care among the school-age youths studied. They also point out the need of intensifying thepreparation of schoolteachers in oral health topics, as well the instructions to the mothers for their oral health care.Moreover, they highlight the importance of the continuous implementation of school-based programs to promotethe oral health.