Understanding Attitudes of the use of Dental Applications among Parents of Kindergarten Aged Children

Author(s): Livny Alon, Hasidim Noa, Chackartchi Tali, Mann Jonathan, Haim Doron, Vered Yuval, Findler Mordechal, Tobias Guy

Introduction: Teledentistry refers to the use of telehealth systems and methods for remote dental examination, diagnosis, consultation, and treatment planning. Dental mobile applications can promote dental health to the public. Due to the fact that the attitudes of parents influence their young children, we investigated 3 hypotheses: 1) Parental attitudes regarding the use of dental apps will be positive for themselves and their children; 2) The attitude of the parent will be more positive for dental apps for their children than for themselves; 3) Parents with higher usage of medical apps, will have more positive attitudes to using dental apps and be more willing to pay for the service

Methods: This cross-sectional questionnaire-based study examined the attitude of parents regarding the use of dental apps. The anonymous questionnaire was distributed through social media in WhatsApp groups of parents with children aged 0-6 years in Israeli kindergartens and schools.

Results: The more apps a person uses in their daily life, the more medical and dental apps they utilize. Higher usage of dental apps improved attitudes towards these applications in the parent group (p<0.01). Positive attitudes increased willingness to pay for the applications (r=0.148, p<0.001).

Conclusion: Health apps change interactions with health care professionals, enabling remote access with doctors and dentists. Parents of young children had positive perceptions of the usefulness of applications as a tool to promote the oral health of their children.

Clinical implication: Further research and development of dental applications is required to improve and reduce dental diseases among young children.