Are student knowledge levels and attitudes about avulsion dental trauma adequate in the faculty of medicine?

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this study was to measure the knowledge levels and attitudes of medical students in Kahramanmaraş city on traumatic dental injuries, particularly dental avulsion.

Methodology: A total of 224 students studying at the medical school in Kahramanmaraş province were included in this research. The students filled out two-part questionnaire forms containing 17 items in total. We used descriptive frequency analysis, crosstabs, and the chi-square test.

Results: Only 7.6% of the students had received relevant training on dental injuries; however, 70.6% did not find the training sufficient. In the case report on replanting a primary tooth, 70.1% of the participants agreed that the primary tooth should not be replanted. In the case report on replanting a permanent tooth, 70.5% of them stated that, although they knew the fallen tooth to be a permanent tooth, they would refer the patient to a dentist immediately because they did not have relevant knowledge for the case. Additionally, 7.6% of the participants stated that if a permanent tooth was avulsed, they would keep the tooth in milk.

Conclusion: We concluded that students majoring in medicine had insufficient knowledge levels and attitudes regarding dental injuries leading to avulsion, and we believe this subject needs to be covered by the relevant curriculum.

How to cite this article: İpek S, Soğukpınar Önsüren A. Are student knowledge levels and attitudes about avulsion dental trauma adequate in the faculty of medicine? Int Dent Res 2021;11(Suppl.1):143-51. https://doi.org/10.5577/intdentres.2021.vol11.suppl1.22

Linguistic Revision: The English in this manuscript has been checked by at least two professional editors, both native speakers of English.