Estonian Dental Students’ Oral Health-Related Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviours (KAB): National Survey-Based Study

Abanoub Riad, Ave Põld, Jana Olak, Hans-Peter Howaldt, Miloslav Klugar, Martin Krsek and Sameh Attia
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Abanoub Riad: Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 62500 Brno, Czech Republic
Ave Põld: Department of Family Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tartu, Ravila 19, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Jana Olak: Institute of Dentistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tartu, Ravila 19, 50411 Tartu, Estonia
Hans-Peter Howaldt: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Justus-Liebig-University, Klinikstrasse 33, 35392 Giessen, Germany
Miloslav Klugar: Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 62500 Brno, Czech Republic
Martin Krsek: Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 62500 Brno, Czech Republic
Sameh Attia: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Justus-Liebig-University, Klinikstrasse 33, 35392 Giessen, Germany

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 3, 1-19

Abstract: The strategic plan for dentistry and oral health in Estonia of 2030 focuses on oral health promotion and disease prevention through undergraduate dental curricula and fostering public health-oriented research among students. The present study was designed as a descriptive cross-sectional study to evaluate oral health-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours (KAB) of dental students in Estonia. The study was carried out in the spring semester of 2020, and it used a modified version of the Hiroshima University Dental Behavioural Inventory (HU-DBI). A total of 129 students responded to the survey, constituting a response rate of 93.5% due to the total population sampling (census) technique used in this study and the small target population size. Out of the 124 students included in the final analysis, 79% were females, 62.1% were clinical students, 11.3% reported smoking tobacco at least once a week, and 86.3% reported problematic internet use. The present study found that mean HU-DBI score of Estonian dental students was 8.09 ± 1.22 which is so far the highest recorded HU-DBI score in Europe. There was no significant difference between female vs. male or preclinical vs. clinical students in terms of HU-DBI score. While clinical students reported less faulty oral hygiene practices, such as hard toothbrush use and aggressive toothbrushing, preclinical students reported a slightly higher mean HU-DBI score. Smoking behaviour was more common among male and clinical students, and it was also associated with alcohol drinking and worry about teeth colour and halitosis.

Keywords: dental education; dental students; Estonia; health knowledge; attitudes; practice; Hiroshima University Dental Behavioural Inventory; HU-DBI; oral health; oral hygiene (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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