Awareness of eco-friendly dentistry among dental faculty and students of king khalid university, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Introduction: Eco-friendly or green dentistry can be a reality by effectively designing dental clinics and using more eco-friendly materials in the clinical practice. Aim: To determine the awareness of eco-friendly dentistry among dental faculty and students in preparation for future implementation. Materials and Methods: Assessment of knowledge regarding eco-friendly dentistry was done using an 18 item self-administered questionnaire among 160 participants. After baseline data collection, the intervention was done by educating participants with a power point presentation. The post-intervention data was then collected for analysis. Statistical analysis was done using Wilcoxon’s signed rank test and one-way ANOVA. Results: The educational intervention increased the knowledge about eco-friendly dentistry confirming the importance of continuing education. There was a statistically significant gain in knowledge among the participants after the presentation. The gain was highest for department of Preventive Dental Sciences (PDS) followed by Substitute Dental Sciences (SDS), No specialty, Maxillofacial Dental Sciences (MDS), and Restorative Dental Sciences (RDS) respectively. (F=5.5091, p<0.05). Conclusion: Lack of knowledge of green dentistry amongst the dental fraternity is highly prevailing. The same can be substantiated with effective training in the respective fields if channelized through the curriculum in an educational set-up.