Knowledge on Radiation Protection & Practice among Dental Students

Background: It is a known fact that ionizing radiation has various biological harmful effects. Dentists routinely depend on radiographs in their clinical practice for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of lesions. So, the dentists should be aware of different radiation protection techniques to minimize the radiation and it’s after effects.

Objective: To assess knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of undergraduate dental students towards biological hazards of dental x- ray and appropriate radiographic protection techniques. To compare the KAP between the clinical undergraduate students and interns.

Materials and Methods: Participants comprised of 256 clinical undergraduates (3rd and 4th year Bachelor of Dental Surgery (B. D. S.) students and interns. The data was collected from each participant by a questionnaire (25 in number) containing multiple choices in the proforma.

Statistical Analysis: Pearson chi-square test was done to evaluate the statistical significance.

Results: Around 59% of the students believed that Dental x-rays were harmful and almost even 10% of the participants didn’t have any idea if the dental x-rays were harmful or not. About 65% of the participants were not aware of National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP)/ International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) recommendations on radiation protection. 42% of the participants think that it is an absolute contraindication for pregnant patients to be radiographed. Over all correct response was 70% and it was noted in descending order from interns followed by fourth year and third year students.

Conclusion: The results from the present work show that KAP levels of the dental students regarding the biological effects of x-rays and the different protective measures were low to medium. To improve their working efficiency with safety in dental imaging, continual education programs at regular intervals at institutional level and national level are advised for strict observance of various radiographic protection guidelines.