Assessment of Knowledge and Attitudes among Clinical Dental Students at School of Dentistry, toward Oral Hygiene Education for Complete Denture Wearers in 2022

Introduction: Considering the importance of maintaining complete denture hygiene, this study aimed to evaluate the knowledge and attitudes of dental students at Shahid Sadoughi Dental School in Yazd considering oral hygiene instruction for the patients with complete dentures. Methods: In this cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study carried out in 2022, the knowledge and attitudes of 140 clinical dental students from School of Dentistry in Yazd were assessed evaluated through a valid and reliable questionnaire. The questionnaire included demographic information, 7 knowledge-based questions, and 5 attitude-based questions. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 16, utilizing a significance level of 0.05. Results: The study comprised 76 male students (54.3%) and 64 female students (45.7%), with an average age of 24.2±2.8 years and an average Grade Point Average (GPA) of 16.46±0.88. The average knowledge score was 7.74±2.51 out of a possible 14. No significant differences were observed in knowledge scores when categorized by gender, age group, or academic semester (P>0.05). A significant positive and correlation was found between the knowledge scores of students and their GPAs (r=0.177, P=0.044). No significant correlation was observed between students' attitudes and their gender, age group, or academic semester (P>0.05). Likewise, students' GPAs showed no significant variation based on their attitudes (P>0.05). Conclusion: The findings of the present study reveal that dental students' knowledge of oral hygiene instruction for the patients with complete denture was insufficient. Gender, age group, and academic semester did not influence students' attitudes toward providing oral hygiene education to complete denture patients.