## 1 Introduction  
Oral disease affects approximately 3.5 billion individuals across all age groups [1].  
The prevalence of oral disease is continuing to increase with increasing urbanization and sedentary lifestyles, resulting in remarkable health and economic burdens [2]. The impact of oral disease extends beyond oral pain and discomfort, often affecting the functioning and quality of life of the affected individuals [3].  
Oral health is an integral part of general health and wellbeing [4]. Evidence suggests that oral health status and oral hygiene practices have a significant role in improving overall health [5]. Nursing professionals account for most of the healthcare workforce and are at the forefront of promoting oral hygiene. Studies have emphasized that nursing professionals do have a prominent role in creating awareness about oral health and imparting integrated oral care [6, 7, 8]. However, poor oral health literacy levels, i.e., lack of knowledge, negative attitudes towards oral healthcare, and inadequate training of nursing professionals, have been identified as the major barriers to quality oral healthcare [9].  
Integrating oral health training into the learning curricula of nursing professionals would empower them to improve care for individuals and reduce oral-health-related burdens. Previous systematic reviews have indicated that the integration of oral health education into nursing practice improves the quality of oral health and reduces inequities associated with oral health [8, 10]. In a systematic review of the literature published between 2008 and 2019, [PERSON] et al. emphasized that the incorporation of oral health education into nursing curricula (via interprofessional education) could be useful to increase the awareness of nursing students, and to improve access to and the ability to provide quality oral care to the elderly population [8]. Similarly, another systematic review assessed the effectiveness of integrating maternal and children's oral health promotion into nursing and midwgery practice. The findings from the review reported that the incorporation of oral health promotion had the potential to reduce oral health disparities and expand access to preventive dental care within poor and disadvantaged communities [10]. Therefore, the present systematic review was conducted to understand the updated evidence on the oral health literacy levels (i.e., knowledge, attitudes, barriers, oral care and practices, and trainings and resources), and to assess the effectiveness of integrating oral health training into the learning curricula of nursing professionals.  
The specific research questions of this systematic review were:  
1. To understand the knowledge and attitudes of nursing professionals towards providing oral healthcare.
2. To understand the perceived barriers towards oral healthcare promotion. Additionally, the general practices related to oral care and practice were explored.
3. To identify the existing trainings and resources, understand the perception towards incorporating oral health training into nursing curricula, and determine the effectiveness of integrating oral health training into the training of nursing professionals.