An exploratory study on cultural variations in oral health attitudes, behaviour and values of freshman (first-year) dental students

To evaluate self-reported oral health attitudes, behavior and compare the oral health attitudes among a group of dental students of different years in India. Four hundred dental students from first year to internship of the undergraduate dental course of Faculty of Dental Sciences, Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute, Chennai were surveyed and a modified HU-DBI survey was administered to all of them. The questionnaire consists of 28 questions with yes or no responses, where the first 25 questions were related to oral health attitudes and the last three questions dealt with smoking habits of the subjects. The responses were tabulated and statistically analyzed using IBM SPSS software version 19.0. Highly significant results were obtained with respect to oral hygiene in both males and females indicative of good oral hygiene practices. The general trends for answering indicate that both males and female dental students showed a high degree of awareness and competence in all four sub sections of the questionnaire, namely oral health attitude, oral hygiene, self-reported oral health and smoking. This result was highly significant for most questions. Dental hygiene and dental hygiene practices among dental students in this South Indian population show an improvement among dental students from year to year. No significant differences were seen between male and female dental students.

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Self Reported Dental Health Attitudes and Behaviour of Dental Students in Turkey

European Journal of Dentistry ◽

10.1055/s-0039-1698889 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 05 (03) ◽

pp. 253-259 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Sinem Yildiz ◽

Basak Dogan

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Response Rate ◽

Dental Health ◽

Self Care ◽

Dental Students ◽

First Year ◽

Health Attitudes ◽

Turkish Version ◽

Care Regimes ◽

Gum Disease

ABSTRACTObjectives: The aim of this study was to compare the differences in self-reported oral health attitudes and behaviour between preclinical and clinical dental students in Turkey using Hiroshima University Dental Behavioural Inventory (HU-DBI). Methods: A Turkish version HU-DBI questionnaire with additional 7 questions, totally 27 items, was distributed among 1022 dental students. Results: The response rate was 75% (486 preclinical and 278 clinical students). Significantly higher (P=0.000) percentage of the preclinical students, compared to clinical students, worry about colour of their teeth, are bothered by the colour of their gums, put off going to the dentist until they have a toothache; think that their teeth are getting worse despite their daily brushing, it is impossible to prevent gum disease with tooth brushing alone, and they cannot help having false teeth when they are old. Moreover, the preclinical students more frequently agree on that their gums tend to bleed when they brush their teeth, they use a toothbrush which has hard bristles, and they don’t feel they’ve brushed well unless with strong strokes (P=0.000). However, a higher proportion of clinical students compared to preclinical students brush each of their teeth carefully, think that they can clean their teeth without using toothpaste, have had their dentist tell them that they brush very well (P=0.000). The HU-DBI score of clinical students (7.47±1.86) was significantly (P=0.000) higher than preclinical students (6.00±1.86). Conclusions: Dental students should have a comprehensive program, including their self-care regimes, starting from their first year of education. (Eur J Dent 2011;5:253-259)

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Oral Health Attitudes and Behavior among a Group of Turkish Dental Students

European Journal of Dentistry ◽

10.1055/s-0039-1697402 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 03 (01) ◽

pp. 24-31 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Ilkay Peker ◽

Meryem Toraman Alkurt

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Oral Health ◽

Dental Health ◽

Dental Students ◽

Health Attitudes ◽

Dental Health Care ◽

And Gender ◽

Mouth Wash ◽

And Behavior ◽

Better Than

ABSTRACTObjectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate self-reported oral health attitude and behavior among a group of Turkish dental students and to compare differences in oral health attitudes between years of study and gender.Methods: This study included 267 (153 female, 114 male) dental students. A modified English version of Hiroshima University Dental-Behavioral Inventory (HU-DBI) which consists of twenty-eight dichotomous responses (yes-no) was used.Results: Totally 141 preclinical (1, 2 and 3rd years of study) and 126 clinical students (4 and 5th years of study) who were mean age of 21.16 participated in the study. Statistically significant differences were found between years of study for brushing each of teeth carefully, cleaning the teeth well without using toothpaste, using a toothbrush which has hard bristles and for having had their dentist tell that they brush very well. There were statistically significant differences between females and males for using a toothbrush which has hard bristles and using tooth floss regularly. Statistically significant differences were found for brushing each of the teeth carefully and using mouth wash on regular basis between smokers and non-smokers.Conclusions: This study confirmed that oral and dental health behavior and attitudes and also their knowledge about oral and dental health care of dental students improved with increasing level of education while oral and dental health care of female students were better than males and oral and dental health care of non-smokers were better than smokers. (Eur J Dent 2009;3:24-31)

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Dental Anxiety and Its Possible Effects on Caries Prevalence Among Group of Dental Students In Kathmandu Medical College

Journal of Nepalgunj Medical College ◽

10.3126/jngmc.v17i2.31661 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 17 (2) ◽

pp. 78-81

Author(s):

Deepak Kumar Roy ◽

Punam Basnet Dixit ◽

Siddharth Ghimire ◽

Roshan Kumar Roy ◽

Aashish Pandey ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Positive Impact ◽

Dental Anxiety ◽

Dental Students ◽

World Health ◽

First Year ◽

Caries Prevalence ◽

Medical College ◽

Dental Hospital ◽

The Mean

Introduction: The prevalence of high dental anxiety varies from 2% to 30% worldwide depending on the study population, the methods applied, and the cut-off scores used. There is strong evidence that dental anxiety is associated with dental attendance; it has been reported that individuals with higher dental anxiety tend to visit the dentist irregularly, which in turn may lead to deterioration in oral health. Studies have demonstrated that dental anxiety is associated with poor self-reported and clinically assigned oral health, more decayed and missing teeth, fewer filled teeth and worse periodontal health. Dental students are the future dental doctors who will be dealing with fearful patients in future. Knowing the facts on dental anxiety will have positive impact while treating and dealing such patients. Objectives: The overall objectives of the study were to assess level of anxiety and its possible effect on prevalence of caries among dental students studying at Kathmandu medical college and Dental hospital. Specific: To access the level of anxiety among dental students of different years (from first year to final year) along it was further focused to analyse the level of anxiety among male and female dental students. Methodology: A cross sectional study was conducted to choose a random convenient sample. The data were collected from dental students of first year to final year studying at Kathmandu medical college dental hospital–KMCDH. A structured questionnaire based on modified dental anxiety scale was used to collect the data. Patients were examined for dental caries prevalence using decay, missing and filled teeth (DMFT) index according to World Health Organisation guidelines. Results: The highest MDAS was seen among the younger batches and the mean values for MDAS declined with higher batch of dental students. The mean dental anxiety score for males was 8.9 and 15.5 for females. The difference was statistically significant the most fearful stimulus in dental clinic for both genders was local anesthetic injection, followed by drilling of teeth. Conclusion: Dental anxiety remains a significant problem for many patients of both gender and different age groups of examined students. Dental anxiety has a negative effect on oral health status by increasing the prevalence of decayed teeth. Further studies should be carried out using large random samples before generalizing this conclusion.

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Pre-Outplacement Perceptions of Dental Students Regarding Rural Oral Health Practice and Associated Factors

Dentistry Journal ◽

10.3390/dj8010022 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 22

Author(s):

Menaka Abuzar ◽

Felicity Crombie ◽

Karin Bishara ◽

Annesley Bryan ◽

Kenneth Chan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Rural Communities ◽

Dental Students ◽

Rural Practice ◽

First Year ◽

Health Issues ◽

Job Opportunities ◽

Care Workers ◽

The Mean ◽

Motivating Factor

Rural outplacement programs have been offered by Australian universities to encourage dental students to consider rural careers. The dental curricula should be designed to provide graduates with a good understanding of oral health issues that rural oral health care workers face. Pre-outplacement perceptions of dental students on rural practice are considered imperative to review and update the outplacement programs; however, they have not been investigated in detail. An online, anonymous, voluntary survey was conducted among the first-year dental students. The responses were solicited on the level of awareness and understanding of rural oral health, intention to practice in rural locations and factors informing the appeal of rural dental practice. The mean of a seven-point Likert scale revealed that most students had some level of perceived knowledge and awareness of rural communities and oral health. Students with rural affiliation were more likely to have the intent to practise rurally after graduation (p = 0.001). For short-term rural practice, students overall expressed positive intention. Greater job opportunities were the main motivating factor, while the distance from family and friends was the main deterring factor for practising rurally. Rural affiliation influences the intent to practise rurally on graduation. The pre-outplacement perceptions, in this study, are comparable with post-outplacement observations reported in the literature.

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Oral Health Attitudes among Preclinical and Clinical Dental Students in Germany

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17124253 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (12) ◽

pp. 4253 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Mohamed Mekhemar ◽

Jonas Conrad ◽

Sameh Attia ◽

Christof Dörfer

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Oral Health ◽

Health Care Providers ◽

Oral Hygiene ◽

Dental Education ◽

Statistical Significance ◽

Dental Students ◽

Care Providers ◽

Health Attitudes ◽

German Universities

Oral health care providers are expected to show good examples of oral health behaviours and attitudes to their community. Previous studies displayed the constructive effect of dental education on oral hygiene manners of undergraduate students. The aim of this survey was to assess and compare aspects of oral health attitudes and behaviours between preclinical and clinical dental students in German universities. The German-language version of the HU-DBI was distributed to preclinical and clinical students from different German universities. Dichotomized (agree/disagree) responses to 20 HU-DBI items were provided in this study, with a maximum possible score of 19. A quantitative estimate of oral health attitudes and behaviours was provided by the total of appropriate answers given to every statement by each group. Data were analysed statistically. The overall mean score of answers favouring good oral hygiene was marginally higher in preclinical (14.62) than clinical students (14.31) but showed no statistical significance. Similarly, the analysis of each item individually displayed no statistically significant differences between preclinical and clinical participants, except in a single item of the survey. This study showed no effective differences in oral hygiene attitudes and behaviour between preclinical and clinical students in German universities. This reveals a weak effect of dental education on improving students’ oral health attitudes in Germany and might demand the introduction of more courses emphasizing the importance of correct oral health behaviour of health care providers.

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Dental Training and Changes in Oral Health Attitudes and Behaviors in Istanbul Dental Students

Journal of Dental Education ◽

10.1002/j.0022-0337.2010.74.9.tb04958.x ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 74 (9) ◽

pp. 1017-1023 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Kadriye Peker ◽

Ömer Uysal ◽

Gülçin Bermek

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Dental Students ◽

Health Attitudes ◽

Attitudes And Behaviors ◽

And Behaviors

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Oral Health Attitudes and Behavior among a Group of Dental Students in Bangalore, India

European Journal of Dentistry ◽

10.1055/s-0039-1698874 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 05 (02) ◽

pp. 163-167 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

R Neeraja ◽

G Kayalvizhi ◽

P Sangeetha

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Dental Students ◽

Dental School ◽

Mouth Rinse ◽

Health Attitudes ◽

Bad Breath ◽

And Behavior ◽

Attitudes And Behavior ◽

Self Administered Questionnaire

ABSTRACTObjectives: To evaluate self-reported oral health attitudes and behavior among a group of dental students in Bangalore, India and to compare the oral health attitudes of students of different years of dental school. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire based on a modified version of the Hiroshima University Dental Behavior Inventory (HU-DBI) was administered to 250 dental students. Results: Significant differences (P<.05) were observed among students of different years in the degree of worrying about the color of the teeth, not having been to the dentist before and brushing each tooth carefully. Strongly significant differences (P<.001) were observed among students of different years in brushing the teeth twice daily, being satisfied with the appearance of the teeth, cleaning the teeth well without toothpaste, visiting dentist only when having a toothache, taking too much time to brush their teeth, worrying about having bad breath and using mouth rinse on a regular basis. Conclusions: Among dental students, the overall knowledge of oral health was good, even though there were deficits in knowledge in a few areas. The oral health attitudes and behavior of dental students improved with increasing levels of education. (Eur J Dent 2011;5:163-167)

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Self-Reported Oral Health Attitudes and Behavior of Dental and Medical students, Yemen

Global Journal of Health Science ◽

10.5539/gjhs.v8n10p143 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 8 (10) ◽

pp. 143 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Esam S. Halboub ◽

Sadeq A. Al-Maweri ◽

Aisha A. Al-Jamaei ◽

Mohammed A. Al-wesabi ◽

Anas Shamala ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Medical Students ◽

Oral Hygiene ◽

Total Sample ◽

Dental Students ◽

Health Attitudes ◽

Level Of Education ◽

Significant Difference ◽

And Behavior ◽

Attitudes And Behavior

Objectives: To assess self-reported oral health attitudes and behavior among undergraduate dental and medical students, and to analyze the variations in oral health attitudes based on gender, level of education, study discipline, academic average, and type of university.Methods: A self-administered questionnaire based on the Hiroshima University-Dental Behavioural Inventory (HU-DBI) was distributed to 1269 undergraduate dental and medical students at two universities (one public and one private) in Sana’a, Yemen.Results: Overall, the mean questionnaire score for the total sample was markedly low (4.91±1.58), with no significant difference between dental and medical students (P>0.05). Females had better oral health attitudes and behavior, especially towards visiting the dentist, tooth-brushing habits and oral hygiene practices (P<0.05). Students attending the public university had better oral health attitudes and behaviors than those attending the private university (P=0.049). On the other hand, no significant associations were observed between students’ oral health attitudes/behavior and level of education and academic performance (P>0.05).Conclusion: Yemeni dental and medical students have shown markedly poor oral health attitude and behavior. Further studies are required to reveal possible shortcoming in these schools’ education process. Dental and medical curricula should emphasize the importance of proper oral hygiene, and further participation of medical and dental students in oral hygiene seminars is highly encouraged.

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A Comparative Study of Oral Health Knowledge, Attitude and Behavior of First and Final Year Dental Students of Udaipur City, Rajasthan.

Journal of Oral Health and Community Dentistry ◽

10.5005/johcd-2-3-46 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 2 (3) ◽

pp. 46-54 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Archana J Sharda ◽

Srinath Shetty

Keyword(s):

Regression Analysis ◽

Oral Health ◽

Health Knowledge ◽

Linear Regression Analysis ◽

Dental Students ◽

First Year ◽

First Year Students ◽

Oral Health Knowledge ◽

The Mean ◽

And Behavior

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To assess and compare differences in oral health knowledge, attitudes and behavior among first and final year dental students in Udaipur city, Rajasthan, India. MATERIAL AND METHODS In a cross-sectional study, 182 first year students (59 males and 123 females) and 157 final year students (75 males and 82 females) of the two dental colleges in Udaipur city; Rajasthan, were surveyed using a self administered structured questionnaire including 37 multiple choice questions pre-tested through a pilot survey. The data was analyzed using the SPSS version 10.0 . The mean percentage scores, standard deviation, and frequency distribution were calculated. The Student's T-test and ANOVA test were used as test of significance. The linear regression analysis were used to assess the relation of knowledge, attitude and behavior. RESULTS The mean % score for oral health knowledge, attitude and behavior were significantly higher in final year students compared to first year students. (p<0.001). The linear regression analysis showed a statistically significant linear relationship of attitude with the knowledge (p<0.001) and behavior with the attitude (p<0.001) of the students. CONCLUSION Besides the positive changes revealed in the oral health knowledge, attitude and behavior, among the students from first to final year of dental studies, preventive behavior among the students could still be improved.

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