title: A comparative evaluation of self-reported oral hygiene practices among medical and engineering university students with access to health-promotive dental care.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was conducted to test the null hypothesis that no difference exists in the oral hygiene knowledge and practices of university students in different courses when they have equal opportunity to access health-promotive dental care.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study was conducted using 120 students each from the medical and engineering colleges at the University of Manipal Academy of Higher Education who had easy access to the dental college within the campus which provides health-promotive dental care to all its patients. A self-administered structured questionnaire consisting of questions on demographic data, oral hygiene knowledge and practices, and dental service utilization patterns was distributed among the students. The data collected was analyzed using SPSS 10 version.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Statistically significant differences were found between the two groups with respect to the knowledge of fluoridated toothpastes, frequency of toothbrush renewal, use of dental floss, and a tongue cleaner (p < 0.001). The groups were similar in all other practices including the utilization of dental services. There were no significant differences between the self-reported oral hygiene knowledge and practices among medical and engineering university students, but the knowledge levels of the students were considerably lower than expected.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Dentistry, Manipal College of Dental Sciences affiliated with the Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Mangalore, India. doshidolar@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Dolar
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Doshi
authors.forename: Pavan
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Baldava
authors.forename: Nagaraj
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Anup
authors.forename: Peter S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Sequeira
mesh_terms: D003729:Dental Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D008297:Male; D009910:Oral Hygiene / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014495:Universities