Substance abuse among students in a dental school

Abstract

Introduction: Substance abuse has become a burning issue among the medical and dental students. Dental students, who later transform into dentists, have a significant role in substance abuse cessation. Thus the study was undertaken to quantify substance abuse among dental students of Kantipur Dental College. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using pretested self-administered questionnaire among undergraduate and post graduate students of Kantipur Dental College. Convenience sampling was done and sample size was calculated. Results: Study revealed 166 (74.10%) as never smokers, 3 (1.30%) as former smokers and 55 (24.60%) as current smokers. Similarly 97 (43.3%) students never used alcoholic drink, 95 (42.41%) consumed alcohol monthly, 29 (12.95%) consumed alcohol 2-4 times a month and 3 (1.34%) consumed alcohol 2-3 times a week. A total of 78 (35%) students used cannabis. Conclusions: Substantial numbers of students were indulged in deleterious habits of smoking, tobacco and cannabis intake. Students need to be properly counseled to discourage substance abuse and create a healthy society.