| JNDA Vol. 21 No. 1 Issue 32 (January - June 2021) | |
Awareness of Oral Health and Preventive Measures among Undergraduate Medical Students |
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| Dr. Rajesh Twyana, Dr. Pranaya Khanal, Dr. Bikash Chaudhary, Dr. Sujaya Gupta | |
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| Abstract | |
Introduction: Oral health enables an individual to smile, speak, eat, swallow, taste, smell, and socialise without active disease, discomfort, or embarrassment. Relationship of oral disease with systemic diseases of heart and lung, preterm low-birth-weight, and other diseases is well documented. Medical doctors are in a position to advocate oral health as part of general well-being. So, young medical students can play an important role in oral health promotion and prevention among their patients, family, and community. Objective: To assess the awareness of oral health and preventive measures among medical students. Materials and Method: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from November to December 2020 among medical students of Kathmandu Medical College from first to fifth years after getting ethical clearance. Convenience sampling was used. A structured Google Forms questionnaire was sent to 450 participants via Viber (126 responded) which were analysed in Microsoft Excel for frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation. Result: Findings show that 26 (20.64%) medical students had never visited a dentist. The most common reason for their visit was severe toothache (47, 37.31%). Of all, 117 (92.86%) knew proper brushing technique, but only 88 (69.84%) brushed twice-daily. Less than half (61, 48.41%) were aware that road traffic accident (RTA) injuries are treated by oral surgeons. Conclusion: Most participants were unaware about various dental specialities; and that oral surgeons can treat RTA patients and play role in early management and aesthetics. Medical students must have better dental awareness so that they can impart role in oral health promotion. |
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| Keywords | |
Awareness; medical students; oral health; undergraduate. |
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