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WhatsApp Messages to Improve Mothers' Oral Health Knowledge and Children's Toothbrushing

17. August 2026 aktualisiert von: MONA RAJEH, King Abdulaziz University

Effectiveness of WhatsApp-Based Messages as an Adjunct to Oral Health Education on Maternal Oral Health Knowledge and Child Toothbrushing Behavior: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Tooth decay is one of the most common health problems in young children in Saudi Arabia. Brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste is one of the most effective ways to prevent it, but preschool children cannot do this properly on their own and depend on their mothers to brush for them and to supervise them. Mothers usually receive oral health advice only once, during a dental visit, and a single session may not be enough to change daily habits at home.

This study will test whether short oral health messages sent to mothers on WhatsApp, in addition to the usual face-to-face advice, help mothers know more about toothbrushing and help their children brush better.

Mothers of children aged 3 to 6 years attending the Pediatric Dentistry Clinics at King Abdulaziz University Hospital in Jeddah will be invited to take part. All mothers will first answer a short questionnaire about what they know about toothbrushing and how their child currently brushes. All mothers will then receive the same 10 to 15 minute face-to-face oral health education session. After the session, each mother will be placed into one of two groups by chance, like flipping a coin. Mothers in the first group will also receive two WhatsApp messages a week for eight weeks, sixteen messages in total, covering how often to brush, how much fluoride toothpaste to use, correct brushing technique, and how to help and supervise their child. Mothers in the second group will not receive these messages.

After eight weeks, all mothers will answer the same questionnaire again, and the answers of the two groups will be compared. Taking part involves no dental treatment or procedures beyond the child's normal care, and mothers may withdraw at any time.

Studienübersicht

Status

Noch keine Rekrutierung

Bedingungen

Intervention / Behandlung

Detaillierte Beschreibung

This is an open-label, two-arm, parallel-group randomized controlled trial with 1:1 allocation, conducted at the Pediatric Dentistry Clinics of King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Mothers of children aged 3 to 6 years will be approached in the clinic waiting area. After electronic informed consent, participants will complete a baseline self-administered questionnaire delivered through Google Forms on their own smartphones, covering demographic characteristics, maternal oral health knowledge, and child toothbrushing behavior. All participants will then receive a standardized 10 to 15 minute individual face-to-face oral health education session delivered in Arabic by the principal investigator, using visual materials from the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and the Saudi Ministry of Health.

Randomization will follow the baseline questionnaire and education session. A computer-generated block randomization sequence with varying block sizes of 4, 6, and 8 will be prepared in advance by an independent person not involved in recruitment or data collection, and concealed in sequentially numbered, opaque, sealed envelopes opened only after baseline assessment and education are complete.

Participants allocated to the intervention arm will additionally receive individually delivered WhatsApp messages twice weekly for eight weeks, sixteen messages in total, reinforcing the same toothbrushing content covered in the education session. Messages will be delivered in Arabic and may include text, images, or short videos drawn from evidence-based sources; all content will be reviewed by a pediatric dentist before delivery. Participants allocated to the control arm will receive the face-to-face education session only, with no further contact during the intervention period.

At eight weeks, all participants will be invited by WhatsApp to complete the same questionnaire through a secure Google Forms link, omitting the demographic and eligibility sections. Non-responders will receive up to three reminders at 3 to 5 days, 7 to 10 days, and 14 days after the initial invitation, after which they will be classified as lost to follow-up.

Blinding of participants and of the investigator is not feasible given the nature of the intervention, so the trial is open-label. Analysis will follow the intention-to-treat principle and will use analysis of covariance comparing eight-week scores between arms with the corresponding baseline score as covariate; results will be reported as adjusted mean differences with 95% confidence intervals. Missing follow-up data will be handled by multiple imputation under a missing-at-random assumption, with estimates pooled using Rubin's rules.

The target sample size of 106 participants, 53 per arm, was derived for ANCOVA with alpha of 0.05, power of 0.80, effect size f of 0.31, and one covariate, giving 42 per arm before inflation for 20 percent anticipated attrition.

Studientyp

Interventionell

Einschreibung (Geschätzt)

106

Phase

  • Unzutreffend

Kontakte und Standorte

Dieser Abschnitt enthält die Kontaktdaten derjenigen, die die Studie durchführen, und Informationen darüber, wo diese Studie durchgeführt wird.

Studienkontakt

Studieren Sie die Kontaktsicherung

Teilnahmekriterien

Forscher suchen nach Personen, die einer bestimmten Beschreibung entsprechen, die als Auswahlkriterien bezeichnet werden. Einige Beispiele für diese Kriterien sind der allgemeine Gesundheitszustand einer Person oder frühere Behandlungen.

Zulassungskriterien

Studienberechtigtes Alter

  • Erwachsene
  • Älterer Erwachsener

Akzeptiert gesunde Freiwillige

Nein

Beschreibung

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Mother of at least one child aged 3 to 6 years
  • Aged 18 years or older
  • Able to read and understand Arabic
  • Owns a smartphone with an active WhatsApp account
  • Attending the Pediatric Dentistry Clinics at King Abdulaziz University Hospital at the time of recruitment
  • Willing to participate and provide informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Dental professional or dental student
  • Currently participating in another oral health education program targeting child oral health or toothbrushing practices

Studienplan

Dieser Abschnitt enthält Einzelheiten zum Studienplan, einschließlich des Studiendesigns und der Messung der Studieninhalte.

Wie ist die Studie aufgebaut?

Designdetails

  • Hauptzweck: Verhütung
  • Zuteilung: Zufällig
  • Interventionsmodell: Parallele Zuordnung
  • Maskierung: Keine (Offenes Etikett)

Waffen und Interventionen

Teilnehmergruppe / Arm
Intervention / Behandlung
Experimental: Oral Health Education Plus WhatsApp Messages

Participants receive a single standardized face-to-face oral health education session and, in addition, WhatsApp-based oral health messages delivered twice weekly for eight weeks (16 messages total) reinforcing toothbrushing recommendations.

Assigned interventions: Behavioral: Standardized Face-to-Face Oral Health Education; Behavioral: WhatsApp-Based Oral Health Messages

A single individual education session of 10 to 15 minutes delivered in Arabic by the principal investigator immediately after baseline assessment, covering the importance of toothbrushing, recommended frequency and timing, use of fluoridated toothpaste, proper brushing technique, parental assistance and supervision, and toothbrush selection and maintenance, supported by standardized visual materials.

Arms: Both arms

Sixteen oral health messages delivered individually via WhatsApp in Arabic, two per week for eight weeks, reinforcing the toothbrushing content of the education session. Messages may include text, images, or short videos from evidence-based sources including the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and the American Dental Association, and are reviewed by a pediatric dentist before delivery.

Arms: Experimental arm only

Aktiver Komparator: Oral Health Education Alone

Participants receive the same single standardized face-to-face oral health education session and no additional oral health education or messages during the eight-week study period.

Assigned intervention: Behavioral: Standardized Face-to-Face Oral Health Education

A single individual education session of 10 to 15 minutes delivered in Arabic by the principal investigator immediately after baseline assessment, covering the importance of toothbrushing, recommended frequency and timing, use of fluoridated toothpaste, proper brushing technique, parental assistance and supervision, and toothbrush selection and maintenance, supported by standardized visual materials.

Arms: Both arms

Was misst die Studie?

Primäre Ergebnismessungen

Ergebnis Maßnahme
Maßnahmenbeschreibung
Zeitfenster
Maternal oral health knowledge score
Zeitfenster: Baseline and 8 weeks after the education session
Maternal knowledge of toothbrushing-related oral health recommendations, measured by an eight-item multiple-choice questionnaire covering timing of toothbrushing, initiation of toothbrushing, parental positioning during brushing, fluoride toothpaste use, recommended fluoride concentration, parental supervision, consequences of inadequate toothbrushing, and toothbrush selection. Each correct answer scores 1 point; incorrect and "I do not know" answers score 0. Total score ranges from 0 to 8, with higher scores indicating greater oral health knowledge.
Baseline and 8 weeks after the education session
Child toothbrushing behavior score (maternal report)
Zeitfenster: Baseline and 8 weeks after the education session
Toothbrushing behavior of the designated study child as reported by the mother, measured by an eight-item questionnaire covering brushing frequency, fluoride toothpaste use, amount of toothpaste, parental involvement during brushing, brushing of all tooth surfaces, brushing duration, toothbrush replacement practices, and post-brushing behavior. Responses consistent with current evidence-based recommendations score 1 point and all other responses score 0. Total score ranges from 0 to 8, with higher scores indicating more favorable toothbrushing practices. Children reported as not brushing are assigned a score of 0.
Baseline and 8 weeks after the education session

Mitarbeiter und Ermittler

Hier finden Sie Personen und Organisationen, die an dieser Studie beteiligt sind.

Sponsor

Ermittler

  • Hauptermittler: MONA Talal RAJEH, PhD, King Abdulaziz University

Studienaufzeichnungsdaten

Diese Daten verfolgen den Fortschritt der Übermittlung von Studienaufzeichnungen und zusammenfassenden Ergebnissen an ClinicalTrials.gov. Studienaufzeichnungen und gemeldete Ergebnisse werden von der National Library of Medicine (NLM) überprüft, um sicherzustellen, dass sie bestimmten Qualitätskontrollstandards entsprechen, bevor sie auf der öffentlichen Website veröffentlicht werden.

Haupttermine studieren

Studienbeginn (Geschätzt)

30. August 2026

Primärer Abschluss (Geschätzt)

30. April 2027

Studienabschluss (Geschätzt)

30. August 2027

Studienanmeldedaten

Zuerst eingereicht

11. August 2026

Zuerst eingereicht, das die QC-Kriterien erfüllt hat

11. August 2026

Zuerst gepostet (Tatsächlich)

14. August 2026

Studienaufzeichnungsaktualisierungen

Letztes Update gepostet (Tatsächlich)

18. August 2026

Letztes eingereichtes Update, das die QC-Kriterien erfüllt

17. August 2026

Zuletzt verifiziert

1. August 2026

Mehr Informationen

Begriffe im Zusammenhang mit dieser Studie

Andere Studien-ID-Nummern

  • 96-05-26

Plan für individuelle Teilnehmerdaten (IPD)

Planen Sie, individuelle Teilnehmerdaten (IPD) zu teilen?

NEIN

Beschreibung des IPD-Plans

Individual participant data will not be shared publicly. De-identified data may be made available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Arzneimittel- und Geräteinformationen, Studienunterlagen

Studiert ein von der US-amerikanischen FDA reguliertes Arzneimittelprodukt

Nein

Studiert ein von der US-amerikanischen FDA reguliertes Geräteprodukt

Nein

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