Comparison of Practices, Knowledge, Confidence, and Attitude toward Oral Cancer among Oral Health Professionals between Japan and Australia

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the practices, knowledge, confidence, and attitude toward oral cancer among Japanese oral health professionals (J-OHPs) and to identify Japanese-specific problems in oral cancer practices by comparing them between Japan and Australia. A questionnaire survey regarding oral cancer practices among Australian oral health professionals (Au-OHPs) was conducted in Australia in 2014-2015. The questionnaire was translated into Japanese, and a Web-based questionnaire survey was conducted among 131 Japanese dentists (J-Dentists) and 131 dental hygienists (J-DHs) in 2016. To compare the J-OHPs' findings with the Au-OHPs', the data of Australian dentists (Au-dentists) and Australian dental hygienists (Au-DHs) were extracted from the Australian survey. Those findings were then compared via a statistical analysis. Eighty-two J-Dentists, 55 J-DHs, 214 Au-Dentists, and 45 Au-DHs participated in this study. Only 34.1 % of J-Dentists and 36.4 % of J-DHs performed oral cancer screenings on their patients; J-OHPs were significantly less likely to perform them than Au-OHPs. The level of knowledge and confidence regarding oral cancer among JOHPs were significantly lower than among Au-OHPs. About 90 % of J-OHPs felt that they needed additional training in oral cancer practices. Less than 40 % of J-OHPs performed oral cancer screenings in their patients. The low level of knowledge and confidence regarding oral cancer among JOHPs may contribute to their low performance of oral cancer practices. Therefore, further education and training programs for oral cancer practices should be provided to Japanese OHPs for the prevention and early detection of oral cancer.

What Do Dentists and Dental Students Think of Oral Cancer and Its Control and Prevention Strategies? A Qualitative Study in Jazan Dental School

“…Likewise, dentists' attitude and skills regarding oral cancer practice are crucial in their engaging in such behaviors [19]. Results of the present study are in line with previously published findings in relation to dentists' limited performance of full clinical oral cancer examination and patients' education of oral cancer related risk factors [20]. If the faculty members do not perform full clinical oral cancer examination and patients' education about its related risk factors, such behavior can be crosstransmitted to their dental students [21].…”

Oral‐cancer knowledge, practice, and attitude assessment of dentists in Upper Egypt: A cross‐sectional study

“…Moreover, a personal interview may explain the high response rate of the current study, which was too close to studies performed in Iran and showed about 92% response rate (Mehdizadeh, Seyed Majidi, Sadeghi, & Hamzeh, ; Razavi et al, ). In contrast, several previously published articles in Brazil, Japan, Australia, and Spain showed a much lower response rate of less than 10% due to the dependence on sent electronic mails (Haresaku, Makino, Sugiyama, Naito, & Marino, ; Lopez‐Jornet et al, ; Pavao Spaulonci, Salgado de Souza, Gallego Arias Pecorari, & Lauria Dib, ). It was found that 82.25% of the dentists identified OSCC as the most common cancer of the oral cavity.…”

Oral Cancer Knowledge Assessment: Newly Graduated versus Senior Dental Clinicians

“…Studies have been carried out in several parts of the world, indicating dentists' poor or lacking knowledge regarding oral cancer [ 2 , 14 , 18 , 20 – 25 ]. In Brazil, some studies have been performed using a questionnaire previously published in the study of Dib et al [ 19 ], which, at that time, demonstrated the low level of professional knowledge on this theme [ 8 , 26 – 29 ].…”