The Impact of Prenatal Dental Care Education on Oral Health Knowledge and Practices Among Pregnant Women in Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil.

PurposeTo evaluate the effect of an educational intervention based on the Oral Health and Your Pregnancy booklet on the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of pregnant women in primary care in Cuiabá, Brazil.DesignQuantitative pre-post intervention study without a control group.SettingA primary healthcare unit in Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil.Sample374 pregnant women in the first to third trimester.InterventionA 30-minute lecture and practical demonstration of oral hygiene.MeasuresSociodemographic questionnaire, indicators of oral-health and dietary knowledge/practices, and OHIP-14.AnalysisDescriptive statistics, paired t-tests, Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, and chi-square tests.ResultsKnowledge about the relevance of oral health during pregnancy increased from 38% to 72% (χ2 = 44.27; P < 0.001), awareness of disease transmission to newborns increased from 10% to 63% (χ2 = 36.41; P < 0.001), and self-reported oral pain/discomfort decreased from 60% to 35% (χ2 = 21.87; P < 0.001).ConclusionThe intervention improved short-term oral-health knowledge and self-perception. The absence of a control group and immediate post-intervention assessment limit causal and long-term inferences.