Oral Health Behaviors and Attitudes Among Dental Students
Summary
Dental students occupy a pivotal role in advancing public oral health, serving both as practitioners and exemplars of optimal self-care. Their personal habits and beliefs are shaped by didactic instruction, clinical exposure and evolving professional identity. Early-year undergraduates often display basic brushing routines and limited interdental cleaning, whereas senior students adopt evidence-based techniques and heightened understanding of caries–periodontal disease interactions. Attitudinal shifts accompany curricular progression, with greater self-efficacy, preventive orientation and patient-centred values emerging during clinical training. Sociocultural background, access to resources and health literacy further modulate these patterns. International comparisons reveal that institutional curricula and cultural norms jointly influence students’ preventive behaviours and readiness to educate patients. Strengthening targeted educational programmes and promoting reflective practice can reinforce consistent, high-quality oral self-care and ultimately enhance the credibility and effectiveness of future dental professionals worldwide.
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Oral Health Behaviors and Attitudes Among Dental Students publication trend
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Technical terms
DMFT index: A quantitative measure of dental caries experience tallying decayed, missing and filled teeth.
HU-DBI: Hiroshima University-Dental Behavioural Inventory, a standard questionnaire assessing dental health attitudes and behaviours.
Oral health literacy: The capacity to obtain, process and understand basic oral health information for informed self-care and decision-making.
Interdental cleaning: The removal of plaque and debris from between teeth using floss, tape or interdental brushes.
Cross-sectional study: Observational research analysing data from a defined population at a single point in time to assess prevalence and associations.
References
- Assessment of the oral health behavior, knowledge and status among dental and medical undergraduate students: a cross-sectional study. BMC Oral Health (2019).
- Oral health knowledge, attitude and behaviour of dental students in a private university. BDJ Open (2019).
- A cross-cultural comparison of dental health attitudes and behaviour among freshman dental students in Japan, Hong Kong and West China. International Dental Journal (2001).
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