Guang Hong, DDS, PhD,(a) Yun-Min Lian, DDS,(b) Shinsuke Sadamori, DDS, PhD,(a) Taizo Hamada, DDS, PhD,(c) and Hiroshi Murata, DDS, PhD(d)
(a)Department of Prosthetic Dentistry, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan, (b)Department of Prosthetic Dentistry, The Second Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, P. R. China, (c)Department of Oral Health Promotion, Graduate School of Dentistry, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan, and (d)Department of Prosthetic Dentistry, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the interest and knowledge of dentists and dental students in China about denture adhesives.
Materials and Methods: Thirty-three fourth-year undergraduate dental students and 26 dentists from China were surveyed using a questionnaire about their knowledge and understanding of denture adhesives, including their education and clinical experience.
Results: The overall response rate was 96.6%. The response rate of the dental students was 93.9%, and that of the dentists was 100%. Significant differences between the two groups were found for eight questions. For the question “Have you heard of denture adhesives (DA)?”, 83.9% of dental students answered “No”, whereas 57.7% of dentists answered “Yes, but only a little”. For the questions of “Have you ever been taught about denture adhesives (DA)?” and “Have you ever seen denture adhesives (DA) in books or lecture meetings?”, over 70% of dentists and dental students answered “No”. A logistic regression model (forward stepwise method) showed that it was possible to distinguish dentists from dental students with a probability of 76.6% by using one out of the 11 items.
Conclusion: The results suggest that the dental profession in China has little knowledge about denture adhesives. Furthermore, for dentists to educate patients about denture adhesives would take considerable time in the clinic. There was a difference in the understanding and experience of denture adhesives between dentists and dental students in China. (Int Chin J Dent 2008; 8: 33-37.)
Key Words: China, dental student, dentist, denture adhesive, questionnaire survey.