A Cross-Sectional Questionnaire-Based Survey on Blood-Borne Infection Control among Romanian Dental Students

Abstract

Background and Objectives: According to the CDC estimates, 5.6 million healthcare workers worldwide are exposed to the risk of occupationally contracting blood-borne pathogens, including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and others. The aim of the present study was to assess the knowledge level on blood-borne infection control (IC) among Romanian undergraduate dental students. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based survey with 21 items was conducted from May 2022 to June 2022. The study had α = 0.620 and Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.660. The Chi-square test was used for data comparison. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 26 (IBM, Armonk, NY, USA), and p ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The study sample included 207 subjects with a mean age of 21.38 (±1.9) years, 59.9% F (female), 40.1% M (male), 38.2% students from year II and 61.8% from year III. Most of the subjects did not have knowledge on the indirect mode of IC, the persistence of HBV, HCV, or HIV, or the existence of rapid tests (p < 0.05). PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis) was known as follows: HBV, 32.36% (67); HCV, 25.60% (53); and HIV, 36.71% (76); p < 0.05. Only 50.24% (104) had knowledge on the recommended testing moments (p = 0.019 by gender, p = 0.752 by year of study). The optimal time to access PEP was considered by 28.01% (58), p ˃ 0.05. Only 37.68% (78) strongly agreed that the one-hand covering technique of the needle was efficient in IC (p < 0.05). Conclusions: The evaluation of the knowledge regarding IC highlighted major gaps in the perception of the subjects, which underlined the need to implement sustained forms of continuing medical education on this topic.

Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Dental Students from Romania Regarding Self-Perceived Risk and Prevention of Infectious Diseases

“…Among these, most (55.0%) did not investigate the source patient's bloodborne virus status and 80.5% did not consult an infectious disease specialist for guidance related to post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP). This is in line with the above-mentioned questionnaire-based study from Ias , i, which showed that only half (50.2%) of the students were aware of the key moments when testing for BBV should be performed after an accidental exposure [17]. In our current study, even among the few respondents who did consult an infectious disease practitioner, only a small fraction presented for the consult on the first day following exposure.…”

“…Increasing year of study was significantly correlated with better knowledge of VPDs. This effect was also seen in a different questionnaire-based study from Ias , i, Romania, where higher year students more accurately recognized HBV as a VPD [17]. However, an important finding of our current study is that increasing year of study was not correlated with self-perceived risk and neither with the willingness to treat patients with chronic viral infections, which highlights an important unmet need and suggests that the current university curricula should be revised to include more targeted information regarding the actual dimension of the risk of transmission of HBV, HCV, and HIV in dental practice.…”