Smoking behavior among third year dental students in Latin American countries: prevalence, perceptions, and risk factors

Abstract

Objective. To examine the association between tobaccorelated risk factors and smoking among third-year dental students in Latin American countries. Materials and methods. Logistic regression models were used to analyze Global Health Professions Student Survey (GHPSS) data. Results. Of 5 605 respondents, 33% smoked and 45% had been exposed to secondhand smoke during the previous month, 34% smoked in school buildings during the past year, and 85% had never received formal training in smoking cessation. Smoking was significantly associated with male sex; Bolivian, Chilean, or Mexican nationality; exposure to secondhand smoke; lacking self-perception of being a "role model" for patients; and not believing that health professionals who smoke are less likely to advise patients to quit smoking. Conclusions. All dental schools should encourage tobacco-free policies and offer cessation services. Cessation training must be incorporated into dental curricula to include dental professionals in the battle against the tobacco epidemic.Keywords: smoking; tobacco; prevalence; student; dentistry http://doi.org/10.21149/7828Resumen Objetivo. Analizar la asociación entre ciertos factores de riesgo relacionados con el tabaquismo en estudiantes de tercer año de odontología de países latinoamericanos. Material y métodos. Se analizaron los datos de la Encuesta Mundial de Estudiantes de Profesiones de la Salud (GHPSS, por sus siglas en inglés) mediante la aplicación de modelos de regresión logística. Resultados. De los 5 605 encuestados, 33% fumó y 45% estuvo expuesto al humo de segunda mano durante el mes pasado; 34% fumó en los edificios de las escuelas dentales durante el pasado año y 85% nunca recibió entrenamiento formal en cesación de tabaquismo. Ser boliviano, chileno o mexicano; estar expuestos al humo de segunda mano; no auto-percibirse como un "modelo a seguir" para los pacientes; y no creer que un profesional de salud que fuma es menos propenso a aconsejar a sus pacientes para dejar de fumar fueron factores asociados significativamente con el tabaquismo. Conclusiones. Todas las escuelas dentales deben fomentar las políticas contra el consumo de tabaco y ofrecer servicios de cesación de tabaquismo. La formación sobre cesación debe incorporarse a los planes de estudio con el fin de incluir a los profesionales dentales en la batalla contra la epidemia de tabaquismo.

Perception and Attitudes of Dental Students Towards Tobacco Use and Smoking Cessation Counseling

“…17 In Iran 54.2% of prospective dentists and 33 %of current patients in Texas, USA have attempted nicotine. 11,12 According to a recent survey conducted in Spain, 18% of dental students smoke. 7 According to a WHO Global Report 18 , Polish students (27.6% vs. 25.3%) and Italian students (42.1 % vs. 21.3 %) smoked twice as much as the general population.…”

“…4 Furthermore, Tam-Maury et al investigated the connection between tobacco-related risk factors and smoking among third-year dentistry students in Latin American nations, finding that 2173 (46.8%) of the 5605 participants said their institution has implemented a policy. 24 The authors have noted that, while many countries have rules prohibiting smoking in public and at work, these prohibitions are not necessarily strictly applied. 25,26 The rate of male students (12.7%) receiving any formal training on smoking cessation approaches during school education was found to be statistically significantly higher than female(5.3%) students in our study (p: 0.039; p <0.05).…”

“…4 Dentistry students, who are dentists of the future, examine the oral cavity and encounter symptoms ranging from tobacco to bad breath, premalignant lesions and cancerous lesions in the oral tissues. 8,[12][13][14] Dental treatment, which usually requires multiple visits, provides a mechanism for initiating, reinforcing and supporting tobacco cessation activities. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate dental students' tobacco use attitudes, knowledge, and views concerning smoking cessation counseling.…”

Prevalence of smoking among health science students in Vietnam in 2018 and associated factors: A cross-sectional study

“…and who also smoked for at least 1 day after being asked “During the past 30 days, on how many days did you smoke cigarettes?” were categorised as current smokers. Non-current cigarette smokers were participants who had never tried or experimented with cigarette smoking (never smokers) as well as had tried or experimented with cigarette smoking but did not smoke cigarettes during the previous month (former smokers) ( Tamí-Maury et al, 2017 ).…”