Does Socio-Economic Status Have An Impact On Knowledge And Awareness Of Different Dental Specialities Among General Public In Chennai City, Tamilnadu, India? - A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

BACKGROUND:Health is of utmost important than anything in the world. Many systemic diseases can be predicted at an earliest stage with the help of dentists by an oral examination. People should have an adequate knowledge and awareness on the different specialities of dentistry to get easy access and maximum benefits.

AIM:This study aimsto assess the impact of socio-economic status on the knowledge and awareness of different dental specialities among general public in Chennai city, Tamilnadu, India.

MATERIALS AND METHOD: A descriptive study was conducted among 150 general publicfrom various shopping malls in Chennai city based on the simplesampling method. The 21 item questionnaire regarding demographic data, knowledge and awareness of different dental specialities was obtained. Their socio-economic status was recorded using modified Kuppusamyscale(2019). The data were collected, tabulated and analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square test.  P value < 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.

RESULTS:  Females had more knowledge and awareness of dental specialities when compared to males. The awareness of dental specialities was found to be statistically significant with gender (P=0.04) and socio-economic status (P=0.04). There was a statistically significant association between knowledge of dental specialities and socio-economic status (P=0.02).

CONCLUSION:The overall knowledge and awareness of people on dental specialities were poor.The people with low socio-economic status had poor knowledge and awareness of dental specialities. The government should ensure easy access and availability of dental servicesto get maximum benefits for all the people.