A comparative study of oral health knowledge, attitude and behaviour of first and final year dental students of Udaipur city, Rajasthan, India

Abstract

To assess and compare differences in oral health knowledge, attitudes and behaviour among first and final year dental students in Udaipur city, Rajasthan, India. In a cross-sectional study, 182 first year students (59 males and 123 females) and 157 final year students (75 males and 82 females) of the two dental colleges in Udaipur city; Rajasthan, were surveyed using a self-administered structured questionnaire including 37 multiple choice questions pretested through a pilot survey. The data was analysed using the spss version 10.0. The mean percentage scores, standard deviation and frequency distribution were calculated. The Student's t-test and anova test were used as test of significance. The linear regression analysis were used to assess the relation of knowledge, attitude and behaviour. The mean % score for oral health knowledge, attitude and behaviour were significantly higher in final year students compared to first year students (P < 0.001). The linear regression analysis showed a statistically significant linear relationship of attitude with the knowledge (P < 0.001) and behaviour with the attitude (P < 0.001) of the students. Besides the positive changes revealed in the oral health knowledge, attitude and behaviour, among the students from first to final year of dental studies, preventive behaviour among the students could still be improved.