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. 2022 Jan 31;19(3):1658.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph19031658.

Oral Health-Related Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviours of Arab Dental Students: Multi-National Cross-Sectional Study and Literature Analysis 2000-2020

Abanoub Riad  1 , Nuraldeen Maher Al-Khanati  2   3 , Julien Issa  4   5 , Mazen Zenati  2 , Nèziha Ben Abdesslem  6 , Sameh Attia  7 , Martin Krsek  1
Affiliations

Oral Health-Related Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviours of Arab Dental Students: Multi-National Cross-Sectional Study and Literature Analysis 2000-2020

Abanoub Riad et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Dental students are the future leaders of oral health in their respective communities; therefore, their oral health-related attitudes and behaviours are of practical value for primary disease prevention. The present study aimed to evaluate oral health-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours of dental students in Arab countries and explore the potential sociodemographic predictors of their oral health outcomes. A multi-centre, cross-sectional study was conducted during the academic year 2019/2020 in three Arab countries: Lebanon, Syria, and Tunisia. The study used a validated Arabic version of the Hiroshima University Dental Behavioural Inventory (HU-DBI) composed of original twenty items that assess the level of oral health-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours, and four additional dichotomous items related to tobacco smoking, alcohol drinking, problematic internet use, and regular dental check-up The HU-DBI score ranges between 0 and 12. A total of 1430 students took part in this study, out of which 60.8% were females, 57.8% were enrolled in clinical years, 24.5% were tobacco smokers, 7.2% were alcohol drinkers, and 87% reported internet addiction. The mean HU-DBI score was 6.31 ± 1.84, with Lebanon having the highest score (6.67 ± 1.83), followed by Syria (6.38 ± 1.83) and Tunisia (6.05 ± 1.83). Clinical students (6.78 ± 1.70) had higher HU-DBI scores than their preclinical peers (5.97 ± 1.86). The year-over-year analysis revealed that dental public health and preventive dentistry courses had significantly and positively impacted the undergraduate students' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours. The gender-based differences were not statistically significant, with a modest trend favouring males, especially oral health behaviours. Tobacco smoking, alcohol drinking, and problematic internet use were associated with lower HU-DBI scores. In the Arab world, the economic rank of the country where the dental students live/study was weakly correlated with the students' mean HU-DBI score.

Keywords: Arab Countries; Hiroshima University Dental Behavioural Inventory—HU-DBI; Lebanon; Syria; Tunisia; attitudes; dental education; dental students; health knowledge; oral health; oral hygiene; practice.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Mean HU-DBI Score of the Participating Dental Students Stratified by Academic Year, 2019/2020, (n = 1430).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Mean HU-DBI Score of the Participating Dental Students Stratified by Clinical Training, 2019/2020, (n = 1430).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Distribution of HU-DBI Score levels among Dental Students in the Arab League Member States, 2004–2020, (n = 6941).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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