Background: Infectious diseases are the major causes of morbidity and mortality related to clinical, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Dentists should apply the guidelines for infection control during practice to prevent cross infection. This study aimed to assess the effect of medical education on the knowledge, attitudes and compliance among dental students regarding infection control measures at the dental teaching hospital faculty, Umm Al-Qura University (UQU), Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional comparative study was performed to assess the knowledge, attitude and compliance towards infection control using a structured questionnaire. All students attending dental clinics in the 4th, 5th and 6th grades (n = 186), 94 males and 92 females participated in this study. Results: Most dental undergraduate students have a knowledge of infection control in dental clinics including sterilization (83%), personal protective equipment (87.1%), proper hand hygiene (86.3%), vaccination (97.9%) and safe disposal of clinical waste (83.9%). More than 90% of UQU dental students were tested for Hepatitis B virus (HBV), performed wrap and disinfection of the dental unit before treating patients and wore personal protective equipment (PPE). The 6th grade dental students have superior knowledge compared to 4th and 5th grade dental students. The attitude and compliance to infection control guidelines within each grade were comparable. However, a between grade comparison showed that the 4th grade students had a better attitude and compliance.

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Objective: The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between dentist knowledge toward disability and the quality of dental care provided to disabled patients. Methods: This Cross sectional pilot study used a descriptive analytic method by using a survey and test the hypothesis. The study sample was recruited from dentists working and studying in al Qassim Region SAUDI ARABIA. A questionnaire survey was designed to find out the opinions of dentists concerning disabled patients, submitted to dentists and students in al Qassim region. The form was filled by approximately 100 dentists and 60 students. The questionnaire was distributed randomly, excluding dentists interested in disabled patients. The SPSS program was used to analyse the collected data.Results: Approximately 95% of the dentists think that the lack of required dentistry academic subjects regarding to disability affect the quality of oral health care of disabled patients. And approximately 90% of the students think that the lack of required dentistry academic subjects regarding to disability affect the quality of oral health care of disabled patients. The majority of doctors agree that the Absence of elective academic subjects concerning disability leads to misunderstanding to the treatment needs. Additionally, the study results showed that Mental (45%) and physical (44%) disabilities shown to be the most treated cases by dentists, however, psychological disabilities cases (3%) were reported as treated cases, as well as social disabilities cases (1%). The rest 7% of cases were reported as all kinds of disabilities. Conclusions: This research highlight that knowledge and communication skills can make dentists and dental students more willing to provide a high-quality oral health care to disabled patients and to reduce the difficulty of treating them.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the prevalence of dental anxiety among patients visiting dental clinics in Al-Qassim region of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Methods: The 377 participants were selected from three major cities of Al-Qassim region - Buridah, Onizah, and Alrass. A self-administered questionnaire based on Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) was used to gather the responses of the participants. The questionnaires were handed to respondents during their regular visits to the dental clinics. Results: The findings of the study revealed that 18% of the sample population suffer from severe dental anxiety. The analysis showed that feelings associated with anesthetic injection are the most-anxiety provoking factor while the next day visit is the least anxiety-provoking item. The findings show that female participants (M = 3.1, p = .001) significantly manifest more dental anxiety than their male counterparts (M = 2.8, p = .001). The younger participants demonstrate higher dental anxiety than other age groups. Conclusion: The dental anxiety exists in the sample population. Gender and age are associated with varying MDAS scores.

This article is intended as a guide to the investigations, relevant findings and proper interpretation of radiography of the temporomandibular joints.