Abstract
Background and Objectives: Preventive approach in dental practice has been cited as a reason for the decline in oral diseases and as a predominant part of the service-mix of dental practices in the future. Dental faculty's knowledge and attitude toward prevention are important, since they have exceptionally important direct and indirect roles in shaping student's preventive orientation and also potentially influencing their patient's ability to take care of their teeth. Thus, this study was conducted to assess knowledge and attitudes toward preventive dental care among dental faculties and their relation to demographic and professional characteristics. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among dental faculties in Bangalore city. Of 17 dental colleges, 4 were selected by simple random sampling. A total of 218 dental faculties was individually asked to complete a pretested questionnaire. The questionnaire requested information on dental faculty's demographic and professional characteristics and their knowledge and attitudes toward preventive dental care. Descriptive, Chi-square tests, and ANOVA were used to analyze the data. Results: The highest knowledge was seen among dental faculties regarding prevention of malocclusion (3.51 ± 1.02) followed by oral cancer (2.95 ± 1.09) and periodontal diseases (2.86 ± 1.02). The least knowledge was seen for the prevention of caries (2.63 ± 1.35). The most positive attitudes regarding preventive dentistry was characterized as being essential (6.34 ± 1.05), useful (6.32 ± 1.07) and valuable (6.27 ± 1.00). Statistically significant differences were found in relation to knowledge and attitudes for all demographic and professional characteristics except for gender and Department of Teaching. Conclusion: Dental faculty seems to have differing levels of knowledge regarding oral diseases with positive attitudes seen regarding preventive dentistry. Continuing education activities and placing emphasis on prevention-related research are recommended.
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