Self-Perceived Dentists' Knowledge of Temporomandibular Disorders in Krakow: A Pilot Study

INTRODUCTION: The most common nondental orofacial pain conditions are temporomandibular disorders (TMDs). TMD basic examination and clinical management are included in a curriculum of each dentistry programme taught in Poland, but it is not clear how the dentists cope with diagnosis and possible treatment in their routine dental practices. The objective of the present study was to assess a level of self-perceived knowledge of TMD amongst dentists in Poland. Materials and methods. The participants, of whom all studied and graduated from a Polish university, were randomly selected from dental offices in Krakow (Poland). The selected dentists were administered an anonymous questionnaire, which contained questions measuring self-assessment of knowledge of TMD diagnosis and therapy and assessing knowledge of ethology and TMD symptoms. RESULTS: Only 6.5% of the participants identified their TMD knowledge as very good, 32.3% assessed it as good, 39.3% thought it was sufficient, 20.4% as insufficient, and 1.49% considered it as poor. 9.4% of all participants have attempted to diagnose and treat TMD patients very often, 26.4% declared performing it often, 45.8% rarely, and 18.4% had never made such an attempt. There was a significant relationship between the dentists' knowledge and their attempts at diagnosing and treating TMD patients (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The level of TMD knowledge amongst the Polish dentists is still insufficient. Raising its level would considerably help the dentists to refer their patients to right specialists for a diagnosis and TMD treatment and/or interdisciplinary management of TMD patients.