Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Parents toward Their Children's Oral Health and its Influence on the Dental Caries Status of 5-10-year-old Schoolchildren in Nashik, Maharashtra: A Cross-sectional Study

health education 7 the oral health awareness programs may be directed toward them.In order to assess the magnitude of the preventive task it is necessary to know the extent and severity of the disease.In the present study an attempt was made to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices of parents toward their children's oral health and its influence on the dental caries status of 5 to 10 years old school children in Nashik, Maharashtra. IntroductIonDental caries, a common disease in children, is considered a major public health problem globally and if left untreated, it can affect a child's quality of life in the form of pain, discomfort, inability to chew, dental sepsis, etc., which may result in loss of school days. 1 Poor oral health also has a significant impact on the growth and cognitive development of a child by interfering with nutrition, concentration, and school participation. 2 Dental caries being a multifactorial disease is associated with a number of risk factors such as dietary habits, oral hygiene practices, nutritional imbalances, salivary flow and composition, use of fluorides, etc.Additionally, parental education, socioeconomic status, poverty, lack of awareness about dental diseases are also associated with risk of dental caries.3 The mothers as well as the entire family play a key role in influencing the oral health behaviors of children. 4 Parents are directly responsible for the dental health of their offspring and can play an important role in preventing oral diseases in children.5 Their knowledge on health including oral health affects most of their decisions with regard to the health of their children.6 Parents are decision makers in matters of children's health and healthcare.Therefore it is essential to explore their knowledge, attitude, and practices as it affects the dental care children receive at home and their access to professional dental services.As young children and their mothers are an important target group for oral