Knowledge and awareness of oral cancer amongst physiotherapists

Oral cancer is among the top three types of cancers in India. It is a malignant neoplasia which arises on the lip or oral cavity. Despite the general global trend of a slight decrease in the incidence of oral cancer, tongue cancer incidence is increasing. Oral cancer is two to three times more prevalent in men than women in most ethnic groups. The main risk factors of head and neck cancer worldwide are smoking and alcohol, as well as DNA oncogenic viruses and habits, such as betel nut. Brief practices observed by general public could be impacted in a positive way, when adequate knowledge is provided by health care professional. Hence, it is necessary to know if they have the knowledge and awareness about the preventable oral cancer.

To evaluate the knowledge and awareness of oral cancer amongst physiotherapists.

A cross sectional study was conducted on physiotherapists. Data was collected using questionnaire which was pre-designed and self-administered. The questionnaire included specific questions to test participants knowledge and awareness related to oral cancer. Data analysis was done by SPSS.

Data from 130 participants were included for final analysis. The majority of study participants were female(n=80;80%). The mean age of participants was 24.5.

The study shows fair knowledge and awareness of oral cancer amongst physiotherapists. Only 60–70% participants appeared to be having good level of knowledge (in terms of prevalence, aetiology, signs and symptoms, treatment)