Scoping review of digital technologies for oral health education among adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa.

IF 1.3 Q4 PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH

Journal of Public Health in Africa Pub Date : 2025-12-04 eCollection Date: 2025-01-01 DOI:10.4102/jphia.v16i4.1509

Richard O Oveh, Omorinola A Afolabi, Anita Dabar, Maha El Tantawi, Moréniké O Foláyan

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background: There is a scarcity of knowledge on digital technology utilisation for oral health education in sub-Saharan Africa for adolescents and young adults.

Aim: This study assessed the scope of digital technology utilisation for oral health education for adolescents and young adults in sub-Saharan Africa.

Setting: The review focused on studies conducted within sub-Saharan African countries and aimed at adolescents and young adults aged 10-19 years.

Methods: The scoping review was registered in the Open Science Framework. A systematic search of the literature was conducted in May 2024 and updated in August 2025 on PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, ACM and Google Scholar. The search terms included the phrases 'oral health education', 'digital technology', 'adolescents', 'young adults' and 'sub-Saharan Africa'. The extracted details were guided by the World Health Organization framework for digital health interventions. Two independent reviewers conducted abstract and title screening, full-text screening and data extraction following the inclusion and exclusion criteria. One reviewer handled conflict resolution.

Results: A total of 3745 records were identified, of which two studies met the inclusion criteria. The studies were conducted in Nigeria between 2013 and 2025. They were community-based, and Telehealth was used for health awareness broadcasts and education.

Conclusion: The utilisation of digital technology in oral health education in sub-Saharan Africa is still low.

Contribution: This study highlights the effectiveness of culturally adapted, video-based interventions delivered in indigenous languages for improving oral health education among adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa.

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撒哈拉以南非洲青少年口腔健康教育数字技术范围审查。

背景：在撒哈拉以南非洲地区，青少年和年轻人对数字技术在口腔健康教育中的应用缺乏相关知识。目的：本研究评估了数字技术在撒哈拉以南非洲青少年和年轻人口腔健康教育中的应用范围。环境：审查的重点是在撒哈拉以南非洲国家进行的研究，目标是10-19岁的青少年和年轻人。方法：范围综述在开放科学框架中注册。于2024年5月对PubMed、Scopus、Web of Science、ACM和b谷歌Scholar上的文献进行了系统检索，并于2025年8月进行了更新。搜索词包括“口腔健康教育”、“数字技术”、“青少年”、“年轻人”和“撒哈拉以南非洲”。提取的细节以世界卫生组织数字卫生干预框架为指导。两名独立审稿人按照纳入和排除标准进行摘要和标题筛选、全文筛选和数据提取。一位审稿人负责解决冲突。结果：共纳入3745篇文献，其中2篇文献符合纳入标准。这些研究于2013年至2025年在尼日利亚进行。它们以社区为基础，远程保健被用于卫生宣传广播和教育。结论：在撒哈拉以南非洲地区，数字技术在口腔健康教育中的使用率仍然很低。贡献：本研究强调了以土著语言提供的文化适应性视频干预措施在改善撒哈拉以南非洲青少年口腔健康教育方面的有效性。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Journal of Public Health in Africa PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH-

自引率

0.00%

发文量

审稿时长

10 weeks

期刊介绍： The Journal of Public Health in Africa (JPHiA) is a peer-reviewed, academic journal that focuses on health issues in the African continent. The journal editors seek high quality original articles on public health related issues, reviews, comments and more. The aim of the journal is to move public health discourse from the background to the forefront. The success of Africa’s struggle against disease depends on public health approaches.