Assessment of Knowledge and Diagnostic Skills of General Dentists in Khorasan Razavi Province (Iran) Regarding Common Oral Diseases in 2008-2009

Abstract

Introduction Proper and rapid diagnosis of oral mucosal diseases improves their prognosis. Unfortunately, due to high clinical similarity, oral lesions are often misdiagnosed. General dentists play a very important role in the initial diagnosis and treatment of common oral cavity diseases, so assessing their knowledge and skills is of particular importance. The aim of this study is to evaluate the knowledge and diagnostic skills of common oral mucosal lesions among general dentists in Khorasan Razavi Province.

Materials and Methods This is a cross-sectional study conducted on 260 dentists using a designed questionnaire, and their knowledge and diagnostic skills related to common oral diseases were examined. Responses were analyzed using SPSS software.

Findings Out of 260 dentists, 257 participated in the study. The average knowledge score of dentists working in Mashhad and other cities was 3.03 and 2.94 respectively, and the average diagnostic skill score of dentists working in Mashhad and other cities was 2.024 and 1.97 respectively.

Conclusion The average knowledge score of dentists working in Mashhad and other cities did not show a significant difference, but there was a significant difference between the average diagnostic scores of these two groups, and the diagnostic skills of dentists working in Mashhad were better. Overall, the diagnostic skills of the study participants were below the desired level, so it is recommended that more retraining courses in oral diseases should be designed and implemented for general dentists.