Knowledge Awareness and Perception towards Prosthodontics Treatment and Services among Medical Students in Jeddah City, Saudi Arabia- A Cross Sectional Pilot Study

Prosthodontics is concerned with the design, manufacture and fitting of artificial replacements for teeth and other parts of the mouth. Prosthodontic treatment involves the replacement of missing teeth   by means of removable or fixed partial denture, implants, complete dentures, or over dentures.  The aim of this study was to evaluate  the level of knowledge,  perception,  awareness  and attitude  of the medical  students towards Prosthodontic treatment. A cross-sectional, Questionnaire based study was conducted among Medical students, covering various Medical colleges  in  Jeddah  city.  The  study  population  was  selected  using  cluster  random  sampling.  Altogether  151  undergraduate  medical  students throughout Jeddah city participated in this study. The data was collected, compiled, and statistically analyzed using SPSS software version 21 and Chi-square test, t-test, and ANOVA. was performed   A total of 151 participants, out of which there were 88 female participants (58.3%) and 63 male participants (41.7%), completed and returned the questionnaire. 134 participants (88.7%) were aware that missing teeth could be replaced and 17 participants (11.3%) were unaware.  93 participants (61.6%) felt implant Supported Prosthesis is a better Option for replacement of missing teeth and 58 participants (38.4%) did not feel so. 75 participants (49.7%) chose fixed partial denture as an option for replacement of missing teeth whereas  76 participants  (50.3%)  opted  for removable  partial  denture.  64 participants  (42.4%)  had fear of prosthodontic  replacement  and 87 participants  (57.6%) had no fear. Within the limitations of this study, following conclusions  were drawn: Majority of the medical students was aware that missing teeth could be replaced. Most of them thought Implant supported prosthesis would be a better option for replacing missing teeth. Equal number of participants  opted for fixed prosthesis.  The most important  finding of this study was that majority of the participants showed a lack of knowledge regarding oral hygiene measures with dental prosthesis.