PERCEPTION AND ATTITUDE REGARDING COVID-19 INFECTION AMONG DENTAL STUDENTS

Abstract

COVID 19 or corona virus is a RNA virus and firstly it was discovered in WUHAN, CHINA on 31st December 2019. SARS COV-2 is responsible for COVID 19 occurrence. A suggested route of humanto-human transmission is through airborne droplets, touching or coming into contact with an infected person or a contaminated surface A large number of medical staff were reported to have acquired the disease while working with infected individuals. The dental clinic is not an exception for a similar possibility of transmitting and acquiring the infection between staff or individuals; moreover, the dental clinic could be a riskier environment for spreading the virus because of the close contact with patients and the nature of the dental treatment. So the aim of the study was to evaluate the perception and attitude regarding covid-19 infection among dental students
 Methods: Post graduate students and interns of a dental college in Central India were selected.184 individuals in total were chosen, with 80 postgraduates overall and around 104 interns. Data was collected using an online questionnaire employing Google Forms. The questionnaires was distributed using social media platform like facebook, WhatsApp etc. Chi square test was used to evaluate perception and attitude regarding covid-19 infection among post graduates and interns and the the data obtained were subjected to statistical analysis using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS Version 23; Chicago Inc., IL, USA).
 Results: This study found that dental students are well-aware of effects of expected SARS-CoV-2 infection transmission in a clinical setting. It also came to the conclusion that postgraduates have a somewhat more positive attitude regarding the illness than interns do.
 Conclusion: The dentist and dental students must be aware of the effects of expected SARS-CoV-2 infection transmission in a clinical setting. They must therefore stay up to date on any updated information regarding this ailment which help them and their patients to be safe while treatment.