Dental health and school-based health education among 15-year-olds in Tehran, Iran

The aim of the present study was to assess dental health and its determinants among 15-year-olds in Tehran, Iran and to evaluate the impact of a school-based educational intervention on their oral cleanliness and gingival health. The total sample comprised 506 students. Data collection was performed through a clinical dental examination and a self-administered structured questionnaire. This questionnaire covered the student s background information, socio-economic status, self-perceived dental health, tooth-brushing, and smoking. The clinical dental examination covered caries experience, gingival status, dental plaque status, and orthodontic treatment needs. Participation was voluntary, and all students responded to the questionnaire. Only three students refused the clinical dental examination. The intervention was based on exposing students to dental health education through a leaflet and a videotape designed for the present study. The outcome examinations took place 12 weeks after the baseline among the three groups of the intervention trial (leaflet, videotape, and control). High participation rates at the baseline and scanty drop-outs (7%) in the intervention speak for reliability of the results. Mean value of the DMFT (D=decayed, M=missing, and F=filled teeth) index of the 15-year-olds was 2.1, which comprised DT=0.9, MT=0.2, and FT=1.0 with no gender differences. Dental plaque existed on at least one index tooth of all students, and healthy periodontium (Community Periodontal Index=0) was found in less than 10% of students. Need for caries treatment existed in 40% of students, for scaling in 24%, for oral hygiene instructions in all, and for orthodontic treatment in 26%. Students with the highest level of parents education had fewer dental caries (36% vs. 48%) and less dental plaque (77% vs. 88%). Of all students, 78% assessed their dental health as good or better. Even more of those with their DMFT=0 (73% vs. 27%) and DT=0 (68% vs. 32%) assessed their dental health as good or better. Smokers comprised 5% of the boys and 2% of the girls. Smoking was common among students of less-educated parents (6% vs. 3%). Of all students, 26% reported twice-daily tooth-brushing; girls (38% vs. 15%) and those of higher socio-economic background (33% vs. 17%) did so more frequently. The best predictors for a good level of oral cleanliness were female gender or twice-daily tooth-brushing. The present study demonstrated that a school-based educational intervention can be effective in the short term in improving the oral cleanliness and gingival health of adolescents. At least 50% reduction in numbers of teeth with dental plaque compared to baseline was achieved by 58% of the students in the leaflet group, by 37% in the videotape group, and by 10% of the controls. Corresponding figures for gingival bleeding were 72%, 64%, and 30%. For improving the oral cleanliness and gingival health of adolescents in countries such as Iran with a developing oral health system, school-based educational intervention should be established with focus on oral self-care and oral health education messages. Emphasizing the immediate gains from good oral hygiene, such as fresh breath, clean teeth, and attractive appearance should be key aspects for motivating these adolescents to learn and maintain good dental health, whilst in planning school-based dental health intervention, special attention should be given to boys and those with lower socio-economic status. Author s address: Reza Yazdani, Department of Oral Public Health, Institute of Dentistry, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 41, FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland. E-mail: reza.yazdani@helsinki.fi

Early school-based parent involvement, children’s self-regulated learning and academic achievement: An Australian longitudinal study

Parent involvement is widely accepted as being associated with children’s improved educational outcomes. However, the role of early school-based parent involvement is still being established. This study investigated the mediating role of self-regulated learning behaviors in the relationship between early school-based parent involvement and children’s academic achievement, using data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (N = 2616). Family socioeconomic position, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status, language background, child gender and cognitive competence, were controlled, as well home and community based parent involvement activity in order to derive a more confident interpretation of the results. Structural equation modeling analyses showed that children’s self-regulated learning behaviors fully mediated the relationships between school-based parent involvement at Grade 1 and children’s reading achievement at Grade 3. Importantly, these relationships were evident for children across all socio-economic backgrounds. Although there was no direct relationship between parent involvement at Grade 1 and numeracy achievement at Grade 3, parent involvement was indirectly associated with higher children’s numeracy achievement through children’s self-regulation of learning behaviors, though this relationship was stronger for children from middle and higher socio-economic backgrounds. Implications for policy and practice are discussed, and further research recommended.

Improving children's attitudes toward refugees: An evaluation of a school-based multicultural curriculum and an anti-racist intervention

We evaluated the impact of the Friendship Project, a program designed to improve elementary school children's attitudes toward refugees. Participants either received 4 weekly lessons based on the program, or they received no lessons. All participants completed attitude measures before and after implementation of the program. Half completed the post-test 1 week after completion of the program, while the other half completed the post-test 7 weeks after its completion. The program led to more positive attitudes toward refugees in the short term, but not in the long term. Moreover, although it did not increase empathy, the program increased the proportion of participants who preferred an acculturation strategy of integration and reduced the number of participants who had conflictual acculturative fit.

Formal Analysis of MPI-based Parallel Programs

Most parallel computing applications in highperformance computing use the Message Passing Interface (MPI) API. Given the fundamental importance of parallel computing to science and engineering research, application correctness is paramount. MPI was originally developed around 1993 by the MPI Forum, a group of vendors, parallel programming researchers, and computational scientists. However, the document defining the standard is not issued by an official standards organization but has become a de facto standard © 2011 ACM.

School-based counseling using systematic feedback: A cohort study evaluating outcomes and predictors of change

The outcomes of school-based counseling incorporating the Partners for Change Outcome Monitoring System (PCOMS) were evaluated using a cohort design, with multilevel modeling to identify predictors of change. Participants were 288 7-11 year olds experiencing social, emotional or behavioral difficulties. The intervention was associated with significant reductions in psychological distress, with a pre-post effect size (d) of 1.49 on the primary outcome measure and 88.7% clinical improvement. Greater improvements were found for disabled children, older children, and where CBT methods were used. The findings provide support for the use of systematic feedback in therapy with children.

A school based study of psychological disturbance in children following the Omagh bomb

Objective
To assess the extent and nature of psychiatric morbidity among children (aged 8 to 13 years) 15 months after a car bomb explosion in the town of Omagh, Northern Ireland.

Method
A survey was conducted of 1945 school children attending 13 schools in the Omagh district. Questionnaires included demographic details, measures of exposure, the Horowitz Impact of Events Scale, the Birleson Self-Rating Depression Scale, and the Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale.

Results
Children directly exposed to the bomb reported higher levels of probable PTSD (70%), and psychological distress than those not exposed. Direct exposure was more closely associated with an increase in PTSD symptoms than in general psychiatric distress. Significant predictors of increased IES scores included being male, witnessing people injured and reporting a perceived life threat but when co-morbid anxiety and depression are included as potential predictors anxiety remains the only significant predictor of PTSD scores.

Conclusions
School-based studies are a potentially valuable means of screening and assessing for PTSD in children after large-scale tragedies. Assessment should consider type of exposure, perceived life threat and other co-morbid anxiety as risk factors for PTSD.

The effects of the Omagh bomb on adolescent mental health: a school-based study

Background: The main objective of this study was to assess psychiatric morbidity among adolescentsfollowing the Omagh car bombing in Northern Ireland in 1998.

Methods: Data was collected within schools from adolescents aged between 14 and 18 years via a selfcompletionbooklet comprised of established predictors of PTSD; type of exposure, initialemotional response, long-term adverse physical problems, predictors derived from Ehlers andClark’s (2000) cognitive model, a PTSD symptoms measure (PDS) and the General HealthQuestionnaire (GHQ).

Results:Those with more direct physical exposure were significantly more likely to meet caseness onthe GHQ and the PDS. The combined pre and peri trauma risk factors highlighted in previousmeta-analyses accounted for 20% of the variance in PDS scores but the amount of varianceaccounted for increased to 56% when the variables highlighted in Ehlers and Clark’scognitive model for PTSD were added.

Conclusions: High rates of chronic PTSD were observed in adolescents exposed to the bombing. Whilstincreased exposure was associated with increased psychiatric morbidity, the best predictors ofPTSD were specific aspects of the trauma (‘seeing someone you think is dying’), what youare thinking during the event (‘think you are going to die’) and the cognitive mechanismsemployed after the trauma. As these variables are in principle amenable to treatment theresults have implications for teams planning treatment interventions after future traumas.

Use of the child health utility and strengths and difficulties outcome measures in economic evaluations of school-based interventions: data from a cluster-randomised controlled trial in Northern Ireland

Background There is growing evidence linking early social and emotional wellbeing to later academic performance and various health outcomes including mental health. An economic evaluation was designed alongside the Roots of Empathy cluster-randomised trial evaluation, which is a school-based intervention for improving pupils’ social and emotional wellbeing. Exploration of the relevance of the Strengths and Diffi culties Questionnaire (SDQ) and Child Health Utility 9D (CHU9D) in school-based health economic evaluations is warranted. The SDQ is a behavioural screening questionnaire for 4–17-year-old children, consisting of a total diffi culties score, and also prosocial behaviour,
which aims to identify positive aspects of behaviour. The CHU9D is a generic preference-based health-related quality of life instrument for 7–17-year-old children.