Assessment of Oral Health Knowledge, Attitude and Practices among Medical Students of Taibah University in Madinah, KSA

Introduction: Oral health is as important as any part of the body and can greatly influence the human beings' normal life and well-being. Better oral health can be achieved with increased awareness and proper oral health practices.

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate oral health knowledge, attitude and practices among medical students of Taibah University in Al-Madinah, KSA.

Materials and Methods: An observational, cross-sectional study was applied among 119 medical students of Taibah University. A self-administrated close-ended questionnaire containing 27 multiple choice questions and one open ended question was distributed electronically, to assess oral health knowledge, attitude and practices toward oral health. According to the responses that were achieved through questionnaires, the data obtained were analyzed by using statistical software package SPSS version 16.0 and statistical significance was set at P < 0.05.

Results: A total of 119 medical students studying in fourth and fifth grades participated in this study. 79.8% of students recognized dental caries as black spots. The difference between males and females regarding dental caries knowledge was statistically significant (P = 0.012). According to 97.5% of students, oral health is important for overall body health. Most of students do not smoke (80.7%), there was gender difference regarding smoking (P = 0.00). The most common reason for not visiting the dentist among the study sample was absence of pain (46.2%).

Conclusion: Oral health knowledge among medical students was fair, attitude towards oral health stands good, while oral health practices were moderate.