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Knowledge and attitude of dental students toward thyroid gland and its disorders: A cross-sectional study

Aim: With an increasing number of patients with thyroid diseases receiving dental care, dental practitioners should have sufficient knowledge about the gland and the associated pathophysiology to avoid any complications during the treatment. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey of the dental students of different academic years of Baba Jaswant Singh Dental College, Hospital and Research Institute, Ludhiana, was done to determine their knowledge and attitude toward different aspects of thyroid gland using a self-administered questionnaire. Results: A total of 234 students including 46 (20%) males and 188 (80%) females aged 19–32 years (mean ± standard deviation [SD] 23.24 ± 2.92 years) participated in the survey. The mean ± SD knowledge score of students was 60.7 ± 8.4. It increased with dentistry years and was between 51% and 75% reflecting overall good knowledge. However, the knowledge of students of all academic years was significantly more for thyroid gland and its hormones compared to other aspects of the gland. There was no significant difference in the mean knowledge (males 60.2% ± 13.6%, females 60.4% ± 8.8% (P = 0.97) and attitude (males 62.7% ± 18.2%, females 71.4% ± 6.0%) (P = 0.25) of the two sexes. However, a significant association was found between knowledge and attitude of the female students toward thyroid patients. Conclusions: The findings of our study indicate that although the dental students have acceptable knowledge about thyroid gland, its functioning, and its abnormalities, they are devoid of awareness about the biochemical mechanisms behind the disease and the treatment plan which can put their patients at risk.