Investigation on knowledge,attitudes and practices of periodontal health care among military paratroopers
ZHANG Min
JIN Rui
QIU Qi
HUANG Ying
SUN Yingjie
XU Yang
MA Guowen
XU Jie
WANG Jia
Abstract：Objective To investigate the knowledge,attitudes,and practices regarding periodontal health care among military paratroopers,and to provide a scientific basis for formulating strategies of periodontal medical support services for airborne troops.Methods A self-administered questionnaire was designed based on the Oral Health Surveys:Basic Methods(2013 Edition)by World Health Organization.A total of 250 active-duty paratroopers were surveyed on jump training frequency,periodontal health status,oral hygiene behaviors,awareness of periodontal health,healthcare-seeking behaviors,and satisfaction with periodontal medical support services.Results Among the participants,89.86％had completed ≤ 30 jumps(mean:13.6 times).Only 29.96％had a"thorough understanding"of their periodontal health status,while 17.51％reported never experiencing gingival bleeding,and 42.40％reported tooth loosening or increased interdental spaces.Oral hygiene practices revealed that 68.66％brushed teeth ≥ 2 times daily,but only 26.73％replaced toothbrushes monthly,58.99％were unfamiliar with the Bass brushing technique,and 25.81％used dental floss/water flossers daily.Concerning healthcare utilization,37.79％would not seek treatment for periodontal problems,and 78.80％rarely underwent professional periodontal examinations.Knowledge gaps were significant:69.12％were unaware of the association between periodontal and overall health,and 13.82％considered periodontal health"unimportant/neutral"for overall health.Additionally,51.61％expressed"neutral/dissatisfied"with current periodontal medical support services.The cumulative number of parachute jumps showed statistically significant associations with the incidence of tooth loosening/increased interdental spaces,awareness of the Bass brushing technique,smoking behavior,and satisfaction with periodontal medical support services.Conclusion Paratroopers demonstrate insufficient awareness and suboptimal practices in periodontal health maintenance.Enhanced health education and improved military oral healthcare services are urgently needed to address these gaps.
Keywords：airborne troopsparatroopersperiodontal healthoverall healthknowledgeattitudesand practicesoral health surveymedical supportsmoking behavior
Publication Date：2025-10-31
Online Publishing Date：2026-08-26(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：6( 1306-1310,1316 )