Maternal Oral Health Educational Intervention to Improve Knowledge, Practice and Dental Service Utilization

NCT07844161 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 4645
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 34
• Locations: 0 countries
• Sites: N/A

Brief Summary

This research follows a mixed-method exploratory sequential design. It will take place at the Antenatal and Dental Outpatient Departments (OPD) of Dow University of Health Sciences (Ojha Campus) in Karachi. This site is ideal provides access to both obstetricians and dental professionals. The study is divided into four distinct phases:

1. 1.Phase I (Qualitative Exploration): The researcher will conduct focus group discussions (FGDs) with pregnant women and In-depth Interviews (IDIs) with healthcare professionals (dentists and obstetricians) to identify specific barriers to dental care and understand stakeholder perspectives.
2. 2.Phase II (Co-Design): Using insights from Phase I, the researcher will develop a culturally sensitive educational intervention called CODE-MOM.
3. 3.Phase III (Baseline \& Intervention): Pregnant women in their first trimester will be recruited. They will complete a questionnaire on their knowledge and practices, followed by a clinical oral examination to record their dental health status. Participants will then receive an educational intervention and biweekly booster messages via WhatsApp to reinforce healthy behaviors.
4. 4.Phase IV (Evaluation): Six weeks later, participants will undergo a follow-up. The questionnaire will be re-administered, and a follow up examination will take place to measure improvements. A feedback survey will assess how acceptable and feasible the program was for them.

Conditions

Oral Health

Keywords

pregnancy; mother; maternal; oral health educational Intervention; oral health Knowledge; oral health Practice; Dental service utilization

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• To assess change in oral health knowledge score,

  measured through a validated interviewer- administered questionnaire assessing knowledge of oral health during pregnancy, scored 0 - \[max\]; higher scores indicate greater knowledge

  baseline and 6 weeks post intervention

• To assess change in oral health practice score,

  measured through a validated interviewer- administered questionnaire assessing oral health related practices during pregnancy, scored 0 - \[max\]; higher scores indicate better self-reported practices

  baseline and 6 weeks post intervention

• To assess change in dental service utilization score,

  proportion of participants reporting utilization of dental services during pregnancy assessed via a validated interviewer- administered questionnaire, scored 0 - \[max\]; higher scores indicate better self-reported service utilization

  baseline and 6 weeks post intervention

Secondary Outcomes (4)

• To assess the satisfaction level among pregnant women for an oral health education intervention in antenatal settings

  6 weeks post intervention / at follow up

• change in DMFT index

  baseline and 6 weeks post intervention

• change in gingival index (GI)

  baseline and 6 weeks post intervention

• change in community periodontal index (CPI)

  baseline and 6 weeks post intervention

Study Arms (1)

single group study

EXPERIMENTAL

all participants completed a pretest, participated in the educational intervention and then at follow up completed posttest.

Behavioral: CODE-MOM

Interventions

CODE-MOM BEHAVIORAL

Pregnant women will be assessed at baseline for oral health knowledge, practice and dental service utilization followed by a clinical oral examination using 3 standard indices (DMFT, GI, CPI). At baseline patients will be counselled in one-to-one interaction with a practicing dentist on their current oral health status and oral health challenges they might face in pregnancy, later a WhatsApp group will be created with the pregnant women and educational messages will be sent to reinforce oral health behaviours and also for women to ask about any issue they might face regarding oral health in pregnancy. The intervention will include biweekly messages for a duration of 6 weeks and at post intervention women will be assessed for their knowledge, practice and dental service utilization with the same questionnaire followed by standard indices (DMFT, GI, CPI) and a feedback survey to assess patient satisfaction level about the oral health educational intervention delivered.

single group study

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: female
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• currently pregnant (first trimester, gestational age ≤12weeks)
• aged 18 years or older
• able to understand and read Urdu
• receiving antenatal care at the study site and intends to deliver at the study site.
• access to a smart phone
• Self-reported dental pain/bleeding gums during pregnancy

You may not qualify if:

• currently enrolled in another oral health intervention

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Dow University of Health Sciences: lead

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: primary investigator

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: September 12, 2026
• First Posted: September 28, 2026
• Study Start: September 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): November 1, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): November 1, 2026
• Last Updated: September 28, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-09