Practice Of Dental Students Research Articles

Knowledge, attitude, and practices of dental students toward human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome of AMC Dental College and Hospital, Ahmedabad, Gujarat: A cross-sectional study

Aims: This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge and awareness of the dental students regarding human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and HIV testing in routine dental practice. Materials and Methods: It is a cross-sectional survey, in which 267 students from 3rd year, 4th year, and interns of B.D.S at AMC Dental College and Hospital participated voluntarily. A close-ended questionnaire with multiple-choice questions was designed for this survey. Chi-square test was used for statistical analysis using SPSS version 20 software. Results: In this study, we found that >90% of the participants have overall adequate knowledge about HIV/AIDS, there were inadequacies in terms of testing, treatment, and therapy. The participants showed positive attitude toward people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs), but the results also indicate that the dental students are not well equipped to treat HIV/AIDS patients though sympathetic. One of the key findings is that >80% of students are in favor of using rapid HIV testing in clinical setup as screening test. Conclusion: Dental students must be made aware of and should understand the importance of treating HIV/AIDS patients. This can be achieved by proper modeling and making the students more sensitized toward PLWHAs as well as introduction of routine HIV testing kits at dental setups.

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Hepatitis B Virus Infection among Dental Students and Interns in Saudi Arabia.

BackgroundHepatitis B virus (HBV) is a worldwide healthcare problem. Dental health care professionals are at a high risk of infection by HBV. The present study investigated the knowledge, attitude and practice of HBV infection among Saudi dental students and Interns in Saudi Arabia.Material and MethodsThis was a questionnaire-based cross-sectional study. A self-administered questionnaire consisting of questions on students’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding HBV was used. Data of 420 participants were analyzed using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Studies) version 22.0.ResultsThe response rate was 84%. Overall, the participants showed fair level of knowledge about HBV, with significant differences between final year students and the interns. Also, the subjects showed negative attitude toward HBV patients. The vast majority reported always wearing gloves (97.9%), gowns (92.1%), face masks (89.2%), disposable caps (87.1%) and protective eye wear (80.9%). The majority of participants (91.4%) had been vaccinated against HBV. However, only 41% completed the recommended 3 doses of the vaccine.ConclusionsThese unsatisfactory findings emphasize the necessity of continued education about HBV in order to improve knowledge, attitudes, and practices of dental students and Interns regarding HBV. Key words:HBV, Knowledge, Practice, Dental students, Interns.

Undergraduate leadership education for dentistry: preparing for practice.

This paper seeks to explore the topic of leadership education in undergraduate dental programmes. ‘Management and leadership’ has been recognised as one of the four main domains in the UK General Dental Council ‘Preparing for Practice’ document and is identified in the ADEE ‘Profile and Competences for the Graduating European Dentist’ document under the domain of ‘Professionalism’. Many dental schools throughout Europe are now planning for the inclusion of leadership education. Questions are therefore raised about how this might be envisaged: what should undergraduates be prepared for and how should it be done? This paper draws on emerging debates found within the wider, non-dental specific leadership studies literature that challenge traditionally held views of leadership and models of leadership education found currently in dentistry. It is argued that all students should be exposed to distributed and inclusive leadership practices to prepare them for the challenges they will find in their everyday practising careers. It is proposed that there is an opportunity to engage with dental practitioners (at all levels) to encourage the development of experiential, active learning to bring alive leadership in practice for dental students.

Dental students' knowledge and practices regarding disinfection and sterilization of extracted human teeth

Extracted human teeth are used by dental students in preclinical courses to practice on them different dental procedures, however they can be a source of infection. According to Center for disease control, extracted teeth should be disinfected or sterilized before use. The current study aimed to assess knowledge and practices regarding disinfection and sterilization of extracted human teeth in a group of dental students. This descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out on third, fourth and fifth- year dental students at College of Dentistry, Taibah University, Saudi Arabia. A self-administered questionnaire was prepared based on a previous study which tests the knowledge and practice of students regarding disinfection and sterilization of extracted human teeth. Results of this study showed that most of the students in all grades agreed that it is necessary to disinfect and/or sterilize extracted teeth before working on them. They reported also that it is mandatory to use specific precautions while working in these teeth since they can be a source of infection and there is a chance of disease transmission through them. The year of education affected the response, where 92.5% of fourth grade students agreed that there is a necessity to disinfect and/or sterilize extracted teeth before working on them in comparison to third grade students who recorded the lowest score (70.4%) with statistically significant difference. Hydrogen peroxide, sodium hypochlorite and autoclaving got the highest scores for teeth sterilization and/or disinfection among the three different grades with insignificant statistical difference. Regarding the practices of students no statistical significant difference was found between the three grades regarding the sterilization methods for extracted teeth and their use of protective barriers during handling of them. Most of students reported that their source of knowledge was taught in dental courses or from instructions from dental staff members with no statistical significant differences between the grades or gender. The results of the present study concluded that knowledge and practices of dental students at Taibah University in relation to sterilization/disinfection methods of extracted human teeth was satisfactory.

Dental students' knowledge and practices regarding disinfection and sterilization of extracted human teeth

Extracted human teeth are used by dental students in preclinical courses to practice on them different dental procedures, however they can be a source of infection. According to Center for disease control, extracted teeth should be disinfected or sterilized before use. The current study aimed to assess knowledge and practices regarding disinfection and sterilization of extracted human teeth in a group of dental students. This descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out on third, fourth and fifth- year dental students at College of Dentistry, Taibah University, Saudi Arabia. A self-administered questionnaire was prepared based on a previous study which tests the knowledge and practice of students regarding disinfection and sterilization of extracted human teeth. Results of this study showed that most of the students in all grades agreed that it is necessary to disinfect and/or sterilize extracted teeth before working on them. They reported also that it is mandatory to use specific precautions while working in these teeth since they can be a source of infection and there is a chance of disease transmission through them. The year of education affected the response, where 92.5% of fourth grade students agreed that there is a necessity to disinfect and/or sterilize extracted teeth before working on them in comparison to third grade students who recorded the lowest score (70.4%) with statistically significant difference. Hydrogen peroxide, sodium hypochlorite and autoclaving got the highest scores for teeth sterilization and/or disinfection among the three different grades with insignificant statistical difference. Regarding the practices of students no statistical significant difference was found between the three grades regarding the sterilization methods for extracted teeth and their use of protective barriers during handling of them. Most of students reported that their source of knowledge was taught in dental courses or from instructions from dental staff members with no statistical significant differences between the grades or gender. The results of the present study concluded that knowledge and practices of dental students at Taibah University in relation to sterilization/disinfection methods of extracted human teeth was satisfactory.

Knowledge, attitude, and practices of hepatitis B infection among dental students

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a major worldwide public health problem. Nearly 45% of the world’s population lives in areas of high endemicity, with India being a country of intermediate endemicity. Objective: To assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices of dental students about HBV infection at a private dental institution in Mysore, Karnataka, India. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted using a pretested, structured, and validated questionnaire containing 16 questions on awareness, transmission, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, vaccination status, and postexposure prophylaxis of HBV infection. Descriptive statistics were carried out along with chi-square test and contingency coefficient. Result: The response rate was 100% (n = 486). A total of 88.7% of the students knew about the transmission of HBV infection. Only 64% students were immunized against HBV. Majority of the students (91.1%) agreed for vaccination against HBV infection. Only 28.4% students knew about the postexposure treatment against HBV infection. About 58.8% students knew about the preventive measures against HBV infection. Conclusion: The overall awareness regarding HBV disease was found to be lacking among the dental students.

Dental students' attitudes toward smoking cessation guidelines

Dentists can be effective in helping their patients achieve smoking cessation. To plan a didactic program, we explored the smoking cessation attitudes and practices of dental students and identified barriers to service provision in the dental setting. We assessed 244 fourth-year dental students at New York University College of Dentistry through a self-report survey. The instrument included a twenty-nine-item measure assessing attitudes towards tobacco-use counseling and adherence to National Cancer Institute tobacco cessation guidelines. The survey also assessed demographics, tobacco use history, and level of preparation to provide services. Generally, students endorsed tobacco prevention practices, but perceived barriers to service provision. Students provided counseling inconsistently, with 69 percent asking about smoking, 58 percent advising cessation, 24 percent offering assistance, and 22 percent providing followup on a routine basis. Those who provided more counseling were more likely to have undergone formal training in smoking cessation, did not feel time was a barrier to counseling, and had more favorable beliefs about dentists' role in promoting smoking cessation. Study findings indicate great receptivity among students as well as a critical need and opportunity to include comprehensive cessation counseling training in the dental curriculum.

An investigation of dental student practice preferences

This study explored characteristics hypothesized to influence dental student long-range practice preferences. Dental students (N = 264) for this study were selected at random from all dental students in one state who rated practice arrangements they most prefer to be in five years after graduation. The rating instrument was composed of two items measured on 5-point Likert-type scales. The independent variables were student gender, year of dental study, and practice arrangement. The research design was a 2 x 4 x 3 completely randomized, fixed-factor, factorial analysis of variance (ANOVA). The ANOVA model explained 48 percent of the variance in student practice arrangement ratings. Both males and females rated solo ownership as the most favorable practice arrangement. Males rated the solo owner arrangement more favorably than did females, while females had a stronger preference for the employee practice arrangement than did males. Study results have implications for dental educators in their efforts to structure curricula to meet diverse student needs, to assess personnel needs and enhance the accuracy of projections, and to evaluate the effect of practice preferences on the health care system.

An international comparison: American and Swedish dental students

It is interesting and often useful to compare and contrast individuals from different countries who decide on careers in dentistry. Such data can help provide a broadened perspective from which inferences about future patterns of specialization and distribution of manpower in America may be made. This study compares the backgrounds and plans for dental practice of dental students in the United States and Sweden. The similarities that American and Swedish dental students share relate to strong parental influence, time of decision to attend dental school, origins in urbanized areas, interest in direct patient care, uncertainty about specialty training, and a lack of prior health-related experience among males in both countries. The differences in the dental students of the two nations are more pervasive and may be explained in part by the ways the two countries have organized and financed dental education and dental care.