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Table 2 Analysis of student comfort and familiarity with topics in oral health pre and post intervention

From: Bridging gaps in oral health education in a medical school in the United States: a pilot study

Question

Pretest # (%)

Posttest # (%)

p value

Are you familiar with the causes, prevention, and signs of dental caries?

 Positive

7 (18.9)

36 (97.3)

 < 0.001

 Negative/Neutral

30 (81.1)

1 (2.7)

 

Are you familiar with the causes and prevention of periodontal disease?

 Positive

3 (8.1)

34 (91.9)

 < 0.001

 Negative/Neutral

34 (91.9)

3 (8.1)

 

Are you aware of links between tobacco use and oral cancer?

 Positive

34 (91.9)

37 (100)

0.24

 Negative/Neutral

3 (8.1)

0 (0)

 

Can you recognize risks for oral disease?

 Positive

13 (35.1)

37 (100)

 < 0.001

 Negative/Neutral

24 (64.9)

0 (0)

 

Are you comfortable conducting an oral examination?

 Positive

3 (8.1)

26 (70.3)

 < 0.001

 Negative/Neutral

34 (91.9)

11 (29.7)

 

Are you comfortable providing basic oral health information to patients?

 Positive

7 (18.9)

32 (86.5)

 < 0.001

 Negative/Neutral

30 (81.1)

5 (13.5)

 

How important is it for primary care health professionals to collaborate with dentists?

 Positive

36 (97.3)

37 (100)

 > 0.99

 Negative/Neutral

1 (2.7)

0 (0)

 
  1. Positive responses of ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ were pooled and compared with negative/neutral responses of ‘neutral,’ ‘not at all,’ and ‘not very.’ Significance testing via Fisher’s exact test was performed with a p value < 0.05 used to define statistical significance. n = 37