Assessment Of Miswak Practice Among Tabligh Followers

The Islamic scholars proposed various techniques in using miswak according to the sunnah of Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. In Malaysia, the use of miswak as an oral hygiene aid is popular among tabligh followers which is a group of Islamic preachers. They are known to routinely practice the sunnah of the Prophet P.B.U.H. including the use of miswak. The aim of this study is to assess the miswak practice among tabligh followers. This is a cross-sectional descriptive study. Forty tabligh followers who visited Masjid Jamek Sri Petaling were selected and they were required to answer the questionnaire. The usage method of miswak was also observed. Descriptive analysis was done on the usage method of miswak. Various techniques of holding the miswak were then compared with area covered during brushing with Chi-square test. Thirty-seven participants were included in the study as 3 incomplete questionnaires were excluded. 73% of the participants used both toothbrush and miswak while the remaining 27% use miswak only. Less than half of the participants omitted on brushing the palatal sites (41.9%) and lingual sites (40.5%) of the posterior teeth. 78.4% of the participants hold the miswak with three fingers on the upper part of the miswak. For brushing technique, they angulate the miswak perpendicularly (81.1%) and then move it vertically (56.8%). However, the technique of holding the miswak was not related to the area covered during brushing (p=0.455). In conclusion, similar technique of miswak use was applied by most of the participants although there were variations in holding the miswak and brushing technique. Nonetheless the technique used in holding the miswak did not have significant impact on the area of the teeth covered while brushing.