Halawani Shahad Mohammed, Swapna Lingam Amara, Al-Harbi Sahar Amer, Hamdi Burhan Nezar, Masaad Farah, Koppolu Pradeep
Department of Oral Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, Al Farabi Dental College, Riyadh, KSA.
Department of Surgical & Diagnostic Sciences, College of Dentistry, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh, KSA.
Pan Afr Med J. 2019 Dec 16;34:198. doi: 10.11604/pamj.2019.34.198.18347. eCollection 2019.
Self-diagnosis and pain management is a worldwide practice. The current study aims to determine the percentage of dental students and interns who self-diagnose and manage their dental pain and further establish the proportion of students who depend on various resources for diagnosing and treating their condition.
A cross-sectional, self-administered questionnaire-based study was conducted among the dental students in and around Riyadh. The questionnaire consisted of three parts including: part 1-demographic data; part 2-pain and self-diagnosis; part 3-visiting the dentist and managing the pain. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 22.0).
Fifty four percent of the participants were involved in self-diagnosis and managed the pain by themselves. Seventy three percent of the respondents experienced teeth/gum discomfort or any symptoms of an oral health problem, of which 57% searched the symptoms they faced on the internet to arrive at a diagnosis. Besides, 35% of the interns considered internet to be a helpful tool for diagnosing their pain. 16% admitted that they have never visited a dentist.
We found that a significant proportion of the participants self-diagnosed by using their background or resorting to the internet, at times consulting a dentist to confirm their diagnosis. The students from the health sciences background should refrain from this practice. Efforts should be made to make the population mindful of the potential risks linked to self-medication and diagnosis. Further research should be done with a larger sample size by including the students and interns from different institutions.
自我诊断和疼痛管理是一种全球通行的做法。本研究旨在确定自我诊断和管理牙齿疼痛的牙科学生和实习生的比例，并进一步确定依赖各种资源来诊断和治疗自身病情的学生比例。
在利雅得及其周边地区的牙科学生中进行了一项基于问卷调查的横断面研究。问卷由三部分组成，包括：第1部分——人口统计学数据；第2部分——疼痛与自我诊断；第3部分——看牙医与疼痛管理。使用社会科学统计软件包（SPSS 22.0版）对数据进行分析。
54%的参与者参与了自我诊断并自行管理疼痛。73%的受访者经历过牙齿/牙龈不适或任何口腔健康问题的症状，其中57%在互联网上搜索他们所面临的症状以得出诊断结果。此外，35%的实习生认为互联网是诊断其疼痛的有用工具。16%的人承认他们从未看过牙医。
我们发现，很大一部分参与者通过利用自身背景或借助互联网进行自我诊断，有时会咨询牙医以确认诊断结果。来自健康科学背景的学生应避免这种做法。应努力让人们意识到与自我用药和诊断相关的潜在风险。应通过纳入来自不同机构的学生和实习生，以更大的样本量进行进一步研究。
