Oral Health Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors of Undergraduate Students Enrolled in the Faculty of Dental Medicine at the Lebanese University

A bstract Objectives: To evaluate the oral health-related knowledge, attitude, and behavior of dental students in Lebanon. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted during the spring semester of the academic year 2024/2025. After giving informed consent, students completed a self-administered questionnaire collecting socio-demographic data, oral health knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors (KABs), and general health behaviors. The validated Arabic version of the Hiroshima University Dental Behavioral Inventory (HU-DBI) was used for the KAB questions, and a translated version of the English-modified version was used for the remaining questions. Results: A total of 246 students participated. The mean overall HU-DBI score was 6.71 ± 1.55. Mean KAB scores were 3.58, 1.16, and 1.97, respectively. The multiple linear regression model showed that none of the variables could statistically significantly predict the HU-DBI total score or the behavior score, while the model significantly predicted the knowledge and attitude scores. After controlling for confounders, sex and regular checkups were statistically significant predictors of the knowledge subscale, and problematic internet use was the only statistically significant predictor of the attitude subscale. Conclusion: An HU-DBI score within the international range was observed among Lebanese dental students, with few factors significantly predicting some subscale scores: sex and regular checkups predicted knowledge; problematic internet use predicted attitude; alas, this prediction was very weak. These findings highlight the need to use a holistic approach of improving knowledge, skills, and attitude in order to increase the chances of behavioral change and to incorporate the impact of behavioral factors on oral health into the dental curriculum so that dental students are better informed.