IADR Abstract Archives
Knowledge Regarding Emergency Care Of Dental Trauma among Dental Students
Objectives: This study was performed to assess the knowledge and awareness level regarding the emergency care of dental trauma among dental students.
Methods: 200 dental students were involved in this study in February 2018, comprising 100 students from first-year BDS and 100 students from final-year BDS by means of a convenience sampling methodology for sample selection. A three-part questionnaire was used containing students’ demographic data, previous training in traumatic dental injury and treatment and knowledge of avulsed permanent teeth and their emergency management.
Results: This study found that only 6% of first-year and 30% of final-year students had received dental trauma first-aid training. In a hypothetical case regarding immediate emergency management of a 9 year-old girl who had fallen down the stairs and remained conscious, but lost a maxillary incisor, 47% of first-year and 20% of final-year students suggested immediate transportation of the tooth to a dentist. For the scenario in which a boy had lost a tooth after falling down on a road, only 26% of first-year and 76% of final-year students suggested re-plantation of the avulsed tooth.
Conclusions: Through this survey, it can be observed that there is a lack of awareness among dental students regarding their role in dental trauma management, signifying towards the implementation of guidelines for dental trauma and the education of undergraduate students and patients in the management of dental trauma using an integrated approach.
Methods: 200 dental students were involved in this study in February 2018, comprising 100 students from first-year BDS and 100 students from final-year BDS by means of a convenience sampling methodology for sample selection. A three-part questionnaire was used containing students’ demographic data, previous training in traumatic dental injury and treatment and knowledge of avulsed permanent teeth and their emergency management.
Results: This study found that only 6% of first-year and 30% of final-year students had received dental trauma first-aid training. In a hypothetical case regarding immediate emergency management of a 9 year-old girl who had fallen down the stairs and remained conscious, but lost a maxillary incisor, 47% of first-year and 20% of final-year students suggested immediate transportation of the tooth to a dentist. For the scenario in which a boy had lost a tooth after falling down on a road, only 26% of first-year and 76% of final-year students suggested re-plantation of the avulsed tooth.
Conclusions: Through this survey, it can be observed that there is a lack of awareness among dental students regarding their role in dental trauma management, signifying towards the implementation of guidelines for dental trauma and the education of undergraduate students and patients in the management of dental trauma using an integrated approach.