Teaching of dental implantology to undergraduate dental students: The Nigerian experience

Abstract

IntroductionDental implantology is an increasingly contemporary integral and important component of the practice of dentistry. This study assessed the level of teaching of dental implantology to dental undergraduates in Nigeria.Materials and MethodsThis was a cross‐sectional descriptive study involving the use of a self‐administered questionnaire consisting of five sections developed for this study. It was sent via e‐mail to a dental faculty in charge of and involved in the teaching of dental implantology in all 10 dental schools (five old generation and five new generation) in Nigeria.ResultsEight of the 10 schools teach implant dentistry and utilised didactic lectures as mode of teaching. Simulations were used in only 1 (12.5%) of the schools whilst clinical demonstration was reported by 2 (25.0%) of the schools. Only 2 (25.0%) of the schools allowed students to experience direct patient care with no school expecting students to provide implant treatment. Almost all schools 9 (90.0%) identified insufficient resources and lack of dental industry support as barriers to effective teaching of implant dentistry. All the dental schools had plans to improve teaching of implant dentistry.ConclusionTeaching of dental implantology in Nigeria is mainly theoretical with no clinical competence assigned. A situation which is unsatisfactory as all Nigerian dental schools have plans both in the short term and long term to improve on the teaching of implant dentistry. There is need for industry support as well as improved and effective training of dental faculty in implant dentistry in Nigeria.

Reforms in current dental curriculum, through perceptions of medical educationists in Pakistan: A Qualitative Analysis.

“…Implantology must be taught to undergraduate students as it is the age of rehabilitation (n=10). 21 There is vast overlapping and repetition of course content in different subjects and subjects like General Medicine and General Surgery which should not be taught to that significant level. However, there is a contradiction with study from Harvard School of Dental Medicine which is in favor to break down the wall between Medicine and Dentistry.…”

Weight and Health-related Quality of Life in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review

“…A similar study that evaluated the practical knowledge of dentists reported similar findings. They noted that 71.8% of respondents reported the lack of practical experience as a significant barrier to practicing implant dentistry, [30] a fact that is given credence to by the largely theoretical based training, and little hands-on clinical experience undergraduate dental students are exposed to while in schoo.l [30,31] While theoretical knowledge provides the instructional foundation for a clinical implantology [32], the need to complement this with clinical experience cannot be over emphasized; a deficiency which manifests in an apathetic approach to implant-based therapy by dental practitioners.…”

Knowledge and attitude to dental implant placement amongst a group of Nigerian dentists

“…Currently in Nigeria, DI is now taught at undergraduate level in most of the dental schools 14 with various forms of pedagogical techniques employed to improve teaching 15 with additional plans to improve undergraduate teaching of dental implantology 14 . However, there is a dearth of information on the perception of dental implant providers themselves 16 with only a few studies reported in other countries 6,16,17 .…”