Study of the extent of awareness about fixed prosthodontic procedures among dental students in Omer-Almukhtar university, Libya

Abstract

In the dental colleges, dental practitioners learn the basic principles of crown & bridge prosthodontics, but there are many aspects to be considered than its fundamentals, such as the laboratory & technical skills, & awareness of recent advances of dental bio-materials. The purpose of the present investigation was to evaluate knowledge & attitude on the basic principles of crown & bridge prosthodontics among dental students and dental interns in faculty of dentistry, Omer-Almukhtar University, Libya. Materials & methods: A cross-sectional study has been conducted among the dental students and interns at faculty of dentistry, Omer-Almukhtar University in Albida city, Libya in the year of 2023.  158 students and interns were chosen. The study has been done by the use of a printed questionnaire consisting of 53 closed-ended questions related to the fundamentals (basic facts) of fixed prosthodontics. After data collection, the SPSS Statistical Software Package (version 25) was used to statistically analyze the completed questionnaires.  At a significance level of P < 0.05, all statistical analyses were performed. The Chi-square test and frequency test were used to analyze & compare the results. Results: The present survey revealed that the majority of the respondents 141 (89.3%) constructed diagnostic casts prior to initiating any fixed prosthodontic treatment. 151 (95.5%) of respondents always used dental radiographs for evaluation of the proposed abutment teeth. 150 (94.9%) of respondents reported using turbine hand piece & 118 (74.6%) use diamond abrasive stones during teeth preparation to receive cast fixed restorations. Also in this survey study 120 (75.9%) of the respondents utilized Putty/reline impression technique, 126 (79.7%) of the respondents used condensation silicon impression material for the fixed prosthodontic impression.  144 (91.1%) of the participants used gingival tissue displacement cord prior to taking impression. In current survey most of the participants, 104 (65.8%) utilized wax & silicon for inter-occlusal record. 9 (5.6%) reported using only written prescriptions for communication with dental laboratory technicians and 148 (93.6%) used verbal communications as well as written prescriptions. Finally, 140 (88.6%) of participants reported disinfection of the crown & bridge impressions prior to transferring to the lab. Conclusion: The participants showed satisfactory level of awareness of the basic principles of crown & bridge practice, but further efforts should be made through continuous dental education, to improve their awareness of the recent material & practice in the field of fixed prosthodontics.

Keywords: Fixed prosthodontics, dental students,  dental interns, awareness, practice, Aljabal-Alakhdar, Libya.