Attitude and knowledge of dental students of National Capital Region regarding HIV and AIDS

BACKGROUND: India is estimated to have third highest number of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection in world with about 2.4 million people currently living with HIV/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). There is a possibility of HIV transmission in the oral health care setting and thus adequate knowledge and proper attitude among dental students is vital to prevent the chances of transmission and for proper care of the patient. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: The present study aimed to investigate the knowledge of dental students about HIV infection and their attitude toward treating HIV/AIDS patients and behaviour practiced. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 600 dental students of different colleges present in National Capital Region (NCR). The students were from third and fourth year and they completed a predesigned questionnaire assessing the knowledge, attitude and willingness to treat HIV/AIDS patients. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to compare mean level of knowledge and attitude toward HIV/AIDS. RESULT: The results showed that only 28% students have excellent knowledge regarding HIV/AIDS. Certain misconceptions were prevalent regarding mode of transmission. It also shows that around 43% of the dental students have an overall negative attitude. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that the students had adequate knowledge about HIV/AIDS and their attitude toward this group of people was significantly negative. There is need and scope to provide correct and detailed information on HIV/AIDS for dental students.