Meza María S, Michel Ingrid M, Rivas Ronald A, Benítez Gloria B, Solaeche Sandra M, Salas-de la Cruz David, Moran Kimberlee S
Research Directorate, Faculty of Dentistry of the National University of Asunción, Asunción, Paraguay.
Health Sciences Research Institute, National University of Asunción, San Lorenzo, Paraguay.
J Dent Educ. 2023 Jan;87(1):50-59. doi: 10.1002/jdd.13094. Epub 2022 Aug 31.
This study explores the practices of obtaining human teeth for teaching and research in Paraguay. The goal of this research is to understand whether the data supports the need to improve ethical training within dental education, including the creation of a human tooth bank (HTB) METHODS: An observational cross-sectional study was conducted. Three semi-structured questionnaires were developed, one for each target population: dental students, dentists in practice, and the general population. The questionnaires were distributed between February and April 2021, using Google Forms RESULTS: The main places where human teeth were obtained by a student are dental clinics, followed by cemeteries. 94% of students and 91% of dentists paid for teeth on at least one occasion. There is a willingness on the part of students and dentists to donate collections of teeth, and among the general population to donate their teeth if they are extracted, for both teaching and research use. Note that, 31% of students and 6% of the population are aware of what an HTB is, at the same time only 16% of dentists know how it functions CONCLUSION: The number of respondents who obtain teeth from cemeteries and who pay for their acquisition is high. Both of these practices raise ethical concerns. The implementation of informed consent for the donation of extracted teeth is practically nil; although there is a positive attitude towards its implementation. Also, there is a lack of knowledge about the role of an HTB; although the population expressed a willingness to donate extracted teeth.
本研究探讨了巴拉圭获取用于教学和研究的人类牙齿的做法。本研究的目的是了解这些数据是否支持在牙科教育中加强伦理培训的必要性，包括建立人类牙齿库（HTB）。方法：进行了一项观察性横断面研究。开发了三份半结构化问卷，分别针对每个目标人群：牙科学生、执业牙医和普通人群。问卷于2021年2月至4月期间通过谷歌表单进行分发。结果：学生获取人类牙齿的主要场所是牙科诊所，其次是墓地。94%的学生和91%的牙医至少有一次为牙齿付费。学生和牙医愿意捐赠牙齿收藏，普通人群中如果牙齿被拔除也愿意捐赠牙齿用于教学和研究。需要注意的是，31%的学生和6%的普通人群知道什么是人类牙齿库，同时只有16%的牙医知道其运作方式。结论：从墓地获取牙齿并为此付费的受访者数量很多。这两种做法都引发了伦理问题。对于拔除牙齿捐赠实施知情同意的情况几乎不存在；尽管人们对其实施持积极态度。此外，对人类牙齿库的作用缺乏了解；尽管人们表示愿意捐赠拔除的牙齿。
