Saleh Amyza, Kong Yink Heay, Vengu Nedunchelian, Badrudeen Haja, Zain Rosnah Binti, Cheong Sok Ching
1Oral Cancer Research Team, Cancer Research Initiatives Foundation (CARIF), Sime Darby Medical Centre, Selangor, Malaysia E-mail :
Asian Pac J Cancer Prev. 2014;15(1):229-37. doi: 10.7314/apjcp.2014.15.1.229.
Dentists are typically the first professionals who are approached to treat ailments within the oral cavity. Therefore they should be well-equipped in detecting suspicious lesions during routine clinical practice. This study determined the levels of knowledge on early signs and risk factors associated with oral cancer and identified which factors influenced dentist participation in prevention and early detection of oral cancer.
A survey on dentists' knowledge and their practices in prevention and early detection of oral cancer was conducted using a 26-item self-administered questionnaire.
A response rate of 41.7% was achieved. The level of knowledge on early signs and risk habits associated with oral cancer was high and the majority reported to have conducted opportunistic screening and advised patients on risk habit cessation. Factors that influenced the dentist in practising prevention and early detection of oral cancer were continuous education on oral cancer, age, nature of practice and recent graduation. Notably, dentists were receptive to further training in the area of oral cancer detection and cessation of risk habits. Taken together, the study demonstrated that the dental clinic is a good avenue to conduct programs on opportunistic screening, and continuous education in these areas is necessary to adequately equip dentists in running these programs. Further, this study also highlighted knowledge deficits and practice shortcomings which will help in planning and developing programs that further encourage better participation of dentists in prevention and early detection of oral cancer.
牙医通常是患者寻求治疗口腔疾病时接触的首批专业人员。因此，他们应具备在常规临床实践中检测可疑病变的能力。本研究确定了牙医对口腔癌早期体征和危险因素的了解程度，并确定了哪些因素影响牙医参与口腔癌的预防和早期检测。
使用一份包含26个条目的自填式问卷对牙医关于口腔癌预防和早期检测的知识及实践进行了调查。
问卷回复率为41.7%。牙医对口腔癌早期体征和风险习惯的了解程度较高，大多数牙医报告开展了机会性筛查并建议患者戒除风险习惯。影响牙医开展口腔癌预防和早期检测工作的因素包括口腔癌方面的持续教育、年龄、执业性质和毕业时间。值得注意的是，牙医愿意接受口腔癌检测及戒除风险习惯方面的进一步培训。总体而言，该研究表明牙科诊所是开展机会性筛查项目的良好场所，在这些领域开展持续教育对于让牙医充分具备开展这些项目的能力很有必要。此外，本研究还突出了知识缺陷和实践不足，这将有助于规划和制定项目，进一步鼓励牙医更好地参与口腔癌的预防和早期检测。
