본 연구는 청소년의 구강증상경험과 구강관리행태에 따른 구강건강상태를 파악함으로써 긍정적인 구강건강행태 변화에 필요한 지속적인 구강보건교육 정착을 위한 기초자료로 활용하고자 시행하였다. 2014년 5월에서 10월까지 부산광역시 소재 K병원 방문 고등학생 288명을 대상으로 구강검진 및 구강증상인지, 구강건강행태에 대해 자기기입식 설문조사를 시행하였다. 구강검사 결과 우식치아는 '없음'이 162명(56.3%)으로 가강 많았고 우식발생 위험치아는 '1~4개'가 168(58.3%), 구강위생상태는 '우수'가 155명(53.8%), '개선요망'이 123명(42.7%)으로 비슷한 분포를 보였다. 구강건강행태에서 지난 1년간 치과에 간 적이 ’없음‘이 74.0%, 하루 2회 이하의 칫솔질이 64.9%, 과자, 콜라 등 당분이 든 음식을 즐겨 먹는가에서 ‘보통이다’ 52.8%, 현재 사용 중인 치약에 불소가 들어 있는가에서 ‘모르겠다’가 39.2%로 높았다. 구강증상인지, 구강관리행태, 치아우식경험과의 상관관계는 우식치아는 구강위생 상태(r=0.914, p<0.000)와 양의 상관관계가 나타났고 우식발생 위험치아는 치약내 불소함유 유무(r=-0.119, p<0.05), 구강위생상태는 ‘과자, 콜라 등 당분이 든 음식을 즐겨 먹는가(r=-0.560, p<0.000)’에 음의 높은 상관관계를 나타냈다. 이상의 결과를 종합해 볼 때 청소년의 구강증상 및 구강관리행태에 따른 치아우식상태에 유의한 영향을 주어 긍정적인 구강건강행태 변화를 위해 적절한 시기의 구강증상 치료 및 관리를 위한 체계적인 구강검진사업과 구강보건교육 프로그램 개발이 필요한 것으로 사료된다.
The present study aimed to ascertain the oral health of young individuals according to their oral symptoms and oral health behaviors. In doing so, we intend to provide foundational data for the establishment of continued oral health education, which is required to make positive changes to oral health behavior. We conducted oral health examinations as well as self-report surveys for identifying oral symptoms and oral health behaviors of 288 high school students who visited the K Hospital, Busan, South Korea, between May and October 2014. In the dental health examination, the majority of the subjects had the result ‘None’ for the number of teeth showing dental caries (162 persons, 56.3%) and ‘1?4’ for the number of teeth at risk of developing dental caries (168 persons, 58.3%). Meanwhile, with respect to oral hygiene, 155 students (53.8%) were rated as ‘Excellent’ and 123 (42.7%) as ‘Hope for Improvement’. In terms of oral health behavior, 74.0% of the participants had not visited a dentist in the past year and 64.9% brushed their teeth less than twice a day. When asked about their level of consumption of sugary foods and drinks such as snacks and cola, 52.8% of the participants responded with ‘Average’, and when asked if the toothpaste they were currently using contained fluorine, the most common response (39.2%) was ‘I don’t know’. When analyzing the correlation between identification of oral symptoms, oral care behavior, and incidence of dental caries, there was a positive correlation between the number of teeth showing dental caries and oral hygiene (r=0.914, p<0.000), and there was a strong negative correlation between the number of teeth at risk of developing dental caries and the use of fluorine-containing toothpaste (r=-0.119, p<0.05) and between oral hygiene and the consumption of sugary foods (r=-0.560, p<0.000). Combining the above results, it can be seen that oral symptoms and oral care behavior in young individuals has a significant effect on dental caries. Therefore, systematic projects to promote oral health and oral health education programs need to be developed to encourage treatment and oral health care at the appropriate time and to create a positive change in oral health behavior.