Faculty of Dentistry, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Yeditepe University, Istanbul, Turkey.
Faculty of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine and Medical Education, Yeditepe University, Istanbul, Turkey.
J Cancer Educ. 2022 Oct;37(5):1496-1503. doi: 10.1007/s13187-021-01989-1. Epub 2021 Mar 20.
The aim of the present study is to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of dental students on oral cancer in Istanbul, Turkey. A self-administered questionnaire adapted from Tanriover et al. consisting of 48 questions was distributed to 311 students enrolled in the fourth and fifth grades of a dental faculty in Istanbul, Turkey. Questions were grouped under 5 main headings: socio-demographic features, knowledge on risk factors and diagnostic procedures, history taking regarding to alcohol and smoking status, opinions and behaviors of oral cancer, and distribution of dental students according to diagnostic practice of oral cancer. The frequencies and percentages were calculated with descriptive analysis. The differences in distributions were analyzed using the chi-squared test. The p value was set at 0.05 for statistical significance. The overall response rate was 98% (305/311). The majority of the students identified tobacco and alcohol as risk factors (82% and 75.1%, respectively), while older age and inadequate consumption of fruits and vegetables were less likely to be known (60.2% and 52.8%, respectively). Almost one-fifth of the students stated that they have never performed oral cancer examinations during their first or subsequent dental examinations of their patients. Female students thought that dentists were authorized to make oral cancer examinations with a higher frequency compared to males (65.8% and 34.2%, respectively; p = 0.006). On the other hand, female students reported that they did not receive adequate education regarding cessation of smoking with a higher frequency compared with males (69.2% female and 30.8% male respectively; p = 0.0001). As this present study revealed that future dentists had insufficient knowledge in some of the main concepts on oral cancer risk factors, and they lacked the confidence in performing oral examinations in their patients, it is concluded that there is a need for a more structured teaching program with greater emphasis on the early signs and risk factors of OC. Reorganization of the dental curriculum, and courses which further draw attention on the responsibility of the dental practitioner in the detection of oral cancers will be beneficial for the creation of awareness on this significant topic among future dental workforce. Understanding the knowledge and perception of dental students on oral cancers is not only limited to a specific country but it is a worldwide critical issue in which information should be exchanged.
本研究旨在评估土耳其伊斯坦布尔牙科学生对口腔癌的知识、态度和行为。一份由 Tanriover 等人改编的、包含 48 个问题的自填式问卷分发给了土耳其伊斯坦布尔一所牙科学院的四、五年级的 311 名学生。问题分为 5 个主要部分：社会人口特征、危险因素和诊断程序知识、关于酒精和吸烟状况的病史采集、口腔癌的意见和行为，以及根据口腔癌诊断实践分配牙科学生。采用描述性分析计算频率和百分比。使用卡方检验分析分布差异。统计学意义的 p 值设为 0.05。总体回复率为 98%（305/311）。大多数学生认为烟草和酒精是危险因素（分别为 82%和 75.1%），而年龄较大和水果、蔬菜摄入不足的可能性较小（分别为 60.2%和 52.8%）。近五分之一的学生表示，他们在对患者的首次或后续牙科检查中从未进行过口腔癌检查。与男性相比，女学生认为牙医更有资格进行口腔癌检查（分别为 65.8%和 34.2%；p=0.006）。另一方面，与男性相比，女学生报告称她们没有接受过关于戒烟的充分教育（女学生分别为 69.2%和男学生 30.8%；p=0.0001）。由于本研究表明，未来的牙医在口腔癌危险因素的一些主要概念上知识不足，并且对在患者中进行口腔检查缺乏信心，因此需要制定更具结构性的教学计划，更加注重 OC 的早期迹象和危险因素。牙科课程的重新组织，以及进一步关注牙科从业者在口腔癌检测中的责任的课程，将有助于在未来的牙科劳动力中提高对这一重要主题的认识。了解牙科学生对口腔癌的知识和看法不仅限于特定国家，而是一个全球性的关键问题，应该在全球范围内交流信息。
