Knowledge, attitudes and behaviours of patients regarding interdental deplaquing devices: A mixed-methods study.
OBJECTIVES
This mixed-methods study assessed patients' oral health literacy, motivation level and barriers regarding interdental plaque control.


METHODS
Participants (n = 49) from a study comparing the use of Glide® Pro-Health Floss Original (F) or GUM® Curved Soft-Picks® Advance (SP) completed daily diaries and questionnaires regarding motivation, tiredness, confidence and satisfaction for their deplaquing method. The Mantel-Haenszel chi-square test was utilized. Data were also collected from 19 participants who attended focus group discussions regarding their oral health habits, knowledge, motivators and barriers with interdental plaque control. Discussions were digitally recorded, transcribed and imported into ATLAS.ti 7.5.15 to identify themes.


RESULTS
There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in relation to age, sex or ethnicity. F users reported statistically significant higher agreement about ability to remove food/debris (P = 0.01), cleaning thoroughly (P = 0.02) and clean feeling of the mouth (P = 0.01). SP users reported higher ease/efficiency of use (P = 0.01), convenience (P = 0.003), easy to hold (P = 0.0001) and easy use away from home (P = 0.008). Daily diaries revealed higher motivation and compliance/ease of use (SP). During the focus groups, some reported that they did not feel clean unless they deplaqued interdentally; however, most reported that they lacked motivation due to constraints on time, no desire due to lack of immediate or tangible rewards, and lack of knowledge on proper use of interdental devices or the benefits of using them.


CONCLUSION
This study showed that the lack of compliance may be due to poor literacy and lack of motivation in patients due to gaps in patient education.
['Smith|Avie Jackie|AJ|https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3687-3826', 'Moretti|Antonio J|AJ|', 'Brame|Jennifer|J|', 'Wilder|Rebecca S|RS|']
D003742:Dental Devices, Home Care D003773:Dental Plaque D005891:Gingivitis D006801:Humans D009909:Oral Health D010349:Patient Compliance
health literacy motivation dental devices home care patient compliance periodontal diseases