Abstract
One hundred and forty-six handicapped children living in institutions were investigated for their behavior concerning tooth brushing, the condition of their oral hygiene and their level of development.
The obtained results were as follows;
1. The teeth of each child were brushed daily, although 93.2 % of them required some assistance or care by the institution staff or their parents.
2. For 67.8% of the children, the condition of their oral hygiene was evaluated good or fair. This favorable situation seemed to due to the positive care by the staff and the parents.
3. A high correlation was recognized between the behavior of brushing and the developmental levels in every field. The highest one was found in the field of the basic daily habits of the mentally retarded and the autistic children, and in the language of the dual handicapped who had mental retardation and physical disability.
4. It seemed that, when the mentally retarded or the autistic child showed abilities higher than those of the three and half year old age level in the developmental age for the basic daily habits, they would be able to handle a tooth brush, and when exceeding the four year level, they could be expected to clean their teeth by themselves.
5. In the child with dual handicapes, when they showed language abilities of more than a two year old age level, they would be able to see the meaning of brushing; and when exceeding the three and half year old age level, they could be expected to handle the tooth brush in response to an order.
6. A certain readiness should be considered as an important factor when giving instruction in tooth brushing.
