Relationship between oral hygiene behaviours and Sense of Coherence

Objectives: The objective of this study was to examine the associations between oral hygiene behaviours (OHB) and sense of coherence (SOC) in Iranian adolescents.

Methods: A representative stratified random sample of 1054 6th grade Iranian students answered a 37-question questionnaire containing questions on socio-demographic characteristics, frequency of oral hygiene behaviours and on SOC. Students then underwent an oral examination. Binary logistic regression analysis was employed to test the association between OHB and SOC.

Results: SOC was significantly associated with toothbrushing frequency (p = 0.01). This association remained significant after adjusting for sex and father's education level (p = 0.01). Among SOC domains, the Comprehensiveness domain (p = 0.04) and Manageability domain (p = 0.04) were significantly associated with toothbrushing frequency. Those associations were not significant after adjusting for sex and father's education level. There was no significant association between the Meaningfulness domain and toothbrushing frequency (p = 0.13).

Conclusions: SOC was associated with oral hygiene behaviours of Iranian adolescents. Adolescents with higher levels of SOC were more likely to brush their teeth more frequently.