Objective: There is a lot of information available about various oral hygiene aids used for the maintenance of oral hygiene and the prevention of oral diseases but the reason why people choose a particular product is under-reported. This study sought to assess the knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of choosing oral hygiene aids among students of management institutes in Ghaziabad, India.
Method: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in five management institutes selected by simple random sampling and data were collected from 1224 students by self-administered structured validated questionnaire.
Results: The study showed that toothbrush (96.8%) and toothpaste (95.2%) were the main products used for the maintenance of oral hygiene. The most commonly used brand dentifrices were Colgate and Close-Up (47%, 23.3%) and in toothbrush, Oral B and Colgate (48.4%, 30.9%), respectively. A particular brand of toothpaste was preferred by 66.4% of the subjects because of childhood and parental use, which was the most influential factor (56.9%). Bristle design was the main criterion for choosing a toothbrush (44.9%), followed by bristle consistency (33.1%). The most commonly used toothbrushes were of soft bristle consistency (51.2%) and 10.9% of the subjects did not know the type of bristle consistency present in their toothbrush.
Conclusion: Selection of oral hygiene products was based more on parental influence and there seems to be a lack of knowledge and awareness about how to choose a dentifrice and toothbrush.