Abstract:
Background:-Oral health is essential to general health, is a fundamental human right, and is one
of the contemporary issues globally. However, poor oral hygiene among primary students is the
major causes of public health problems in Africa including Ethiopia, contributed to dental caries
and other periodontal diseases. Good practice of oral hygiene adopted as a preventive strategy
against oral diseases to improve the well-being of children and families. In Somali region, there
is limited awareness, poor access to quality water, sanitation, and health infrastructures which
may lead to poor practice of oral hygiene. However, oral hygiene practice was low among
students and little is known about the practice as well as factors contributing to it in Jigjiga.
Objective:-To assess the prevalence of oral hygiene practice and its associated factors among
primary school children in Jigjiga town, Somali region, Ethiopia, from October 15 to 25, 2025.
Methodology:-A school based cross sectional study will be conducted in Jigjiga town among
primary school children students. A total of 383children will be selected by systematic random
sampling technique from randomly selected primary schools. Structured and pretested
questionnaire will be used to collect information through face to face interview. Descriptive
statistics such as frequency, percentage and cross tabulation will be displayed. Binary logistic
regression will be used to measure the association between dependent and independent variables
and significant variables at p-value <0.2 will be further tested using multivariate analysis to
identify independent factors associated with the practice of oral hygiene. P-value <0.05 will be
considered to show the level of significance. Odds ratio with 95% CI will be reported for each
predictors.
Expected Outcome: The finding is expected to improve the practice of oral hygiene among
primary school children in Jigjiga town by creating awareness to children, families and building
the schools capacity to introduce oral health education program
Proposed budget: The study needs a total budget of 60,658.00 Ethiopian Birr and will be
covered by self.
