Knowledge and attitudes towards HIV/AIDS among dental students of Jazan University, Kingdom Saudi Arabia

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the knowledge and attitudes of dental students at Jazan University, Saudi Arabia; compare the differences in HIV/AIDS related knowledge and attitudes between the genders and years of study. METHODS: This cross-sectional survey was conducted among dental students of Jazan University (N = 208; Response rate = 88.1%). RESULTS: Most of the students (93%) knew “HIV/AIDS patients can infect dental workers” and 14% were unaware of the fact that HIV/AIDS patients can be diagnosed with oral manifestations. Less than half the subjects (47.6%) were confident on their ability to safely treat HIV/AIDS patients and only 28.8% of the study population believed that their knowledge about infection control is enough to treat HIV/AIDS patients. Males and 4th year students had significantly greater HIV/AIDS related knowledge and attitudes than their comparative counterparts. CONCLUSIONS: HIV/AIDS related knowledge and attitudes in dental students of Jazan University are comparable to other studies from Saudi but are poor when compared to other countries.