Knowledge, practice, and attitude evaluation of forensic dentistry among Iraqi dentists: Questionnaire-based study

Abstract

Abstract Background: Forensic dentistry is a branch of forensic science that deals with the examination, analysis, and interpretation of dental evidence in legal investigations. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, practice, and attitudes of Iraqi dentists toward forensic dentistry. Materials and Methods: A questionnaire was designed with four sections and distributed to dentists. The four sections were demographic, knowledge (assessed the dentists’ knowledge and consisted of 14 questions), practice (evaluated the dentists’ practices and consisted of six questions), and attitude (consisted of two questions to assess the dentists’ attitudes). For the knowledge, practice, and attitude sections, the answers were either “yes” (correct), “no,” or “I don’t know” (incorrect). The correct answer frequencies were calculated, and the mean scores of responses were compared among the different variables. Results: A total of 414 dentists responded, including 196 male dentists and 218 female dentists. The mean age of the responders was 32.57 years, and the responders were divided according to age into: 304 (≤40 years), and 110 dentists (˃40 years), according to qualifications into: 168 (postgraduate) and 246 (graduate), and according to experience years: 228 (≤10 years) and 186 (˃10 years). The questions related to using teeth as indicators of age received the highest number of correct answers, whereas the use of palatal rugae and lips in forensic dentistry received the lowest scores. Conclusion: Iraq dentists had limited knowledge, practice, and attitude about forensic dentistry. Therefore, it is important for undergraduate and postgraduate programs, as well as official training courses, to focus more attention on forensic dentistry.