Survey on women's awareness of the importance of oral hygiene during pregnancy for the health of the mother and her unborn child: Observational aepidemiological study.

AIM: This research aims to assess the oral hygiene habits of women in the perinatal period. The study also aims to ascertain the degree of awareness of mothers, or future mothers, about the importance of oral hygiene for themselves and their child. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Study design: aepidemiological, observational, cross-sectional survey among a group of young women of childbearing age. The group was composed of mothers recruited from kindergartens and pregnant women who went to counseling centers or participated in childbirth courses throughout Italy. RESULTS: The sample included 500 women from Central and Northern Italy and 263 from Southern Italy for a total of 763 subjects. Most of them were Italian (87.9%) and just over 50% of them had at least one child (52.7%); 40% were above 35 years old, and 52% were between 25 and 35 years of age. CONCLUSION: Young women often underestimate the importance of oral hygiene even before pregnancy, and the impact of oral hygiene lasts throughout gestation and continues after childbirth.