title: Oral health knowledge and practice of 12 to 14-year-old Almajaris in Nigeria: A problem of definition and a call to action.
abstract: We studied oral health knowledge and practices of 12 to 14-year-old Almajiri boys in northern Nigeria because we found few studies on their health, and none on their oral health. We present our study after explaining the desperate life circumstances and context of Nigeria's approximately 10 million Almajiri youth. Our results, when compared with those of previously studied populations (those most similar in terms of environment, age range, and oral health characteristics) show that the Almajiris fare poorly. Although the international community has paid some attention to the Nigerian Almajiri children's educational needs, there has been little support for health, and none for oral health. We argue that the World Health Organization could better assist Nigeria and these children by assuring that the Almajiris are not excluded from programs targeting children classified as 'street children', and make specific recommendations.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Dentistry, University of Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Enoch Abiodun
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Idowu
authors.affiliation: Department of Dentistry, Federal Medical Center, Owo, Ondo State, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Adedapo Olanrewaju
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Afolabi
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive & Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, College of Health Sciences, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife 220005, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Solomon Olusegun
authors.initials: SO
authors.lastname: Nwhator
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D006266:Health Education; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice / Q000208:ethnology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009549:Nigeria; D009909:Oral Health / Q000208:ethnology