Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge, awareness, and practices of dental students regarding biomedical waste (BMW) management.Methods: A self-administered structured questionnaire consisting of 16 questions on knowledge, awareness, and practices about BMW management was distributed among 100 students randomly belonging to 3 rd year, final year and intern students of Saveetha Dental College, Saveetha University, Chennai. The data extracted were tabulated, statistically analyzed using SPSS version 20.0 and results obtained. The data were analyzed using ANOVA test (all the results are calculated at 1% level of significance) and Post-hoc test.Results: Overall, 67% respondents were aware of the existing BMW management policy systems in India. 62% of students were aware about the correct color coding management system for hospital waste management that prevails in India. 86% of students knew about the dental waste categories of materials used in dentistry. There was a statistically significant difference of knowledge levels among the 3 rd year, final year students and the interns. 100% practice discarding sharps in the puncture-proof containers. Only 27% of the respondents discarded the extracted tooth in a proper way. Only 51% of them have attended previous training programs on dental waste management. There was also a statistically significant difference of BMW disposal practices among the three groups. Conclusion:The majority of dental students in our study have good level of knowledge and awareness regarding BMW management in dental clinics. However, their practice toward BMW disposal was poor. Hence, the knowledge acquired must be put into practice. Intern students have the highest level of knowledge and practices toward dental waste disposal when compared to final year and 3 rd year students. Hence, these findings imply that proper training, continuing education programs, and short-term courses about BMW management, and infection control procedures are required to motivate the dental students and dental auxiliaries. The importance of training regarding BMW management must be emphasized as the lack of proper and complete knowledge about BMW management impacts practices of appropriate waste disposal.

Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the knowledge, awareness, and attitude of dental students toward human immunodeficiency virus/ acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) patients and to know whether knowledge has any influence on the attitude and willingness to treat HIV/AIDS patients. Methods:A self-administered, structured questionnaire consisting of 19 questions on knowledge, attitude, and awareness about HIV/AIDS was distributed among 100 students randomly belonging to 3 rd year, final year, and intern of Saveetha Dental College, Saveetha University, Chennai. The data extracted were tabulated and statistically analyzed using SPSS Version 20.0, and the results were obtained. Results:The results revealed that many of the respondents demonstrated a good level of knowledge. The total mean knowledge score was 73% (good knowledge). There was a statistically significant difference of knowledge levels among the 3 rd -year and final-year students and the interns. The overall mean attitude score was 62.7% (negative attitude). There was no statistically significant difference of attitude among the three groups. Conclusion:Majority of dental students in our study have good level of knowledge regarding HIV/AIDS. Final-year students had the highest level of knowledge, and 3 rd -year students had minimum level of knowledge regarding HIV/AIDS. Irrespective of the year of study, majority of the students showed a negative attitude toward HIV/AIDS patients and only a few among the interns showed a positive approach toward treating HIV patients. Hence, these findings imply that there is a need to improve educational methods to more clearly address misconceptions and attitudes toward the disease.