Knowledge and practices of caries prevention among Taiwanese dentists attending a national conference

Background/purposeThis study was carried out to evaluate Taiwanese dentists’ knowledge and practice towards preventive dental care.Materials and methodsA questionnaire survey was conducted at the nationwide annual dental congress in 2008 in Taipei, Taiwan. Dentists’ knowledge about preventive dentistry was assessed based on their responses to 19 statements. Dentists’ attitudes towards preventive dentistry were assessed based on responses to the effectiveness of 16 preventive procedures. The dentists were also asked about their experience with the use of sealants and fluoride.ResultsMore than 80% could not distinguish between new and old theories of the mechanism of action of fluoride. The correct answer was “remineralization of incipient decay”, not “incorporation of fluoride into developing teeth”. Also 68% incorrectly answered that “lactobacilli play a more-significant role in the initiation of smooth surface carious lesions than do mutans streptococci”, an older theory. Over 80% perceived the effectiveness of “pit and fissure sealants”, “professional prophylaxis”, and “flossing” for preventing caries in children, and the last 2 procedures for adults. “Community water fluoridation” and sealants were selected as the most effective procedures for caries prevention in children, and “professional prophylaxis” and “flossing” for adults. Although sealants were perceived as being effective, 44% of dentists reported that they only applied sealants to ≤10% of their [children/pediatric?] patients. The reasons were that patients had difficulty understanding the value (67%) and were unwilling to pay (63%). Nearly 55% of dentists provided topical fluoride treatments to children more than 2 times per year. However, the frequency decreased to less than once per year for teenagers and adults. Most of the dentists finished a fluoride application in 1 min for in-office treatments.ConclusionsA portion of Taiwanese dentists seemed to have limited up-to-date information about certain topics related to caries prevention. The frequency of treatments for caries prevention, such as topical fluoride and sealants, did not match the perceived effectiveness of these treatments by participants.