title: Health camps in schools and content analysis of the school textbooks: A cross-sectional study in Tamil Nadu.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  School textbooks have been considered as an effective platform for promoting oral health. The information on oral health in the Indian school textbooks has not been evaluated.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to evaluate the contents of school textbooks on oral health and to quantitatively analyze the school health camps and guest lectures/demonstrations conducted in the schools of three districts in Tamil Nadu.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty schools which participated in the study followed the Central Board of Secondary Education, matriculation, or the state board syllabus. A questionnaire was designed to collect information about the medical camps, dental camps, guest lectures, and demonstrations conducted in the last academic year from the schools. The questionnaires were distributed among the school teachers of grades I-V. They were asked to provide photocopies of the topics on oral health which were included in the syllabus. Content analysis of the information on oral health-related topics in the school textbooks was done. Descriptive statistics of the details of the camps and lectures was done using Pearson's Chi-square test (SPSS version 17) (SPSS Inc. Chicago, Illinois, USA).
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no significant difference in the number of medical camps (P = 0.445), dental camps (P = 0.055), and guest lectures (P = 0.069) organized among the three boards of schools. Basic information on the parts and type of teeth, tooth decay, and brushing were present in the textbooks of all three boards of schools.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The school textbooks of all the three boards contained basic and adequate information on oral health. Periodic revisions of the content and quality of information in the school textbooks are essential. To make the information sticky for long-term, reinforcements in the form of school health education is needed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry, KSR Institute of Dental Science and Research, Tiruchengode, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: P R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Geetha Priya
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry, KSR Institute of Dental Science and Research, Tiruchengode, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Sharath
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Asokan
authors.affiliation: Department of Conservative Dentistry, Sri Ramachandra Dental College and Hospital, Porur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kandaswamy
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Interns From KSR Institute of Dental Science and Research, Tiruchengode, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Malliga
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Interns From KSR Institute of Dental Science and Research, Tiruchengode, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Arthi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003479:Curriculum; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D009909:Oral Health / Q000193:education*; D012572:School Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012574:Schools / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013782:Textbooks as Topic