Objective: To evaluate the sports teachers’ knowledge and attitude towards sports related oro-facial injuries and the use of mouth guards.
Methods: Certified sports teachers from various schools and colleges of Vidarbha region, Central India were exposed to pre-validated questionnaire containing both open ended and closed ended questions. Data obtained was analyzed and expressed as percentage.
Results: Total 197 sports teachers from 167 schools and colleges participated in the study. Approximately 67.5% of the sport teachers agreed that sports related oro-facial injuries are common and inline skating (58.4%) was the most common sport. Only 8.1% of the sport teachers were having knowledge regarding first aid to oro-facial injuries. All sport teachers agreed that sport related oro-facial injuries can be prevented, but only 10.1% incorporated protective measures in practice to prevent it. Majority of the sports teachers (85.8%) were aware that mouth guard is used as a protective device to prevent oro-facial injuries but only few recommended in their school. Lack of motivation by the school and college administration was the major reason (50%) for non-recommending. Inline skating (54.8%) was the highly recommended sports for mouth guards by sports teachers, followed by boxing and basketball. Only 29.9% of the sports teachers were aware that dentist are the appropriate specialist to approach for mouth guards.
Conclusion: The sports teachers had adequate knowledge regarding the sports related orofacial injuries and the protective devises used to prevent it, but their inappropriate attitude is the main hindrance in the prevention of orofacial injuries.
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