ABSTRACT

Introduction The awareness of the growing associations between periodontal disease and systemic conditions and the advances in periodontal surgical therapy need to be emphasized, more so among the medical professionals. Studies addressing the awareness level about periodontics among other healthcare providers like medical professionals are very few. The present survey is therefore planned to explore the awareness and perception of periodontal disease and the various advanced treatment options among medical professionals to emphasize the importance of periodontal disease and knowledge of treatment procedures in order to encourage maintenance of periodontal health. Materials and methods A cross-sectional survey based study was conducted using an online self-structured, pretested, close-ended questionnaire. The survey targeted 500 medical professionals including students, faculty and practitioners in the western region of Saudi Arabia. Chi-square test was used to confirm the difference in proportions and a probability of 95% was considered as statistically significant (p<0.05). Results: A large percentage of the participants were graduates (50%) with nearly equal undergraduates and postgraduates. Chi-square tests revealed statistically significant differences between the undergraduates, graduates and postgraduates (p<0.05) with regard to most of the responses, with very few responses being not significant (p>0.05). Conclusion: Overall, the knowledge and awareness of postgraduate medical professionals with regard to periodontal disease and advanced surgical therapy were better than graduates and undergraduates. It is essential to enhance the same for a better interdisciplinary approach in dealing with patients with periodontal conditions. Keywords: Periodontal disease, systemic disease, medical professionals, knowledge, awareness, periodontal surgery
Publication date: 01/07/21

https://ijbpas.com/pdf/2021/July/MS_IJBPAS_2021_5775.pdf

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https://doi.org/10.31032/IJBPAS/2021/10.7.5775