1Senior Lecturer, Department of Public Health Dentistry, Vaidehi Institute of Dental Science and Research Centre, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
2Reader, Department of Public Health Dentistry, Bapuji Dental College and Hospital, Davanger
3Professor and Head, Department of Public Health Dentistry, Bapuji Dental College and Hospital, Davanger
4Postgraduate Student, Department of Public Health Dentistry, Bapuji Dental College and Hospital, Davanger
*Corresponding author: Sujatha B K, Senior Lecturer, Department of Public Health Dentistry, Vaidehi Institute of Dental Science and Research Centre, Bangalore,Karnataka, India. Email: sujibk2005@yahoo.com, Contact number: 9019956236
Oral health is an integral part of general health. It is an essential component of health throughout the life of an individual. Certain systemic diseases can manifest in the oral cavity. Majority of the population approaches medical practitioners for their oral health problems at primary health centre level. Hence, general practitioners should have an adequate knowledge about oral health and also they should play an active role in oral health promotion.
To assess the oral health awareness among undergraduate medical students in Davangere city.
A self structured, pre-tested, closed ended questionnaire consisting of 25 questions with options on Likert scale was used for the survey. Questions were related to oral health problems and their relation with general health. The data was collected, compiled and analyzed using Chi-square test.
The oral health awareness was assessed based on the inter-quartile range, in that only 25% of the undergraduate students were found to have good oral health awareness, 38% were found to have average and 37% were found to have poor oral health awareness. Final year undergraduate medical students were found to have better oral health awareness (40%), when compared to second (13%) and third year students (23%) at p< 0.001.
Oral health awareness among undergraduate medical students was found to be poor. Final year undergraduate students were found to have better oral health awareness.
Oral Health, Medical Students, General Practitioner, Primary Health Centre
