Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Antibiotic Prescription among Dentists in the West-Bank: A Cross Sectional Study

Abstract

Inappropriate use of antibiotics not only drives antibiotic resistance and misuses of resources but also it increases the risk of potentially fatal reactions and exposes people to unnecessary side effects. Moreover, changes in the dental pharmacotherapeutic field have been so rapid in recent years that necessitating the constant update of dental practitioners’ knowledge about new drugs, drug interactions, and useful therapeutic trends is necessary. Thus, this study came to determine the level of antibiotic abuse among general dentists in the West Bank, and evaluate the knowledge and attitude toward the antibiotic prescription guidelines using a self-administered questionnaire. A cross sectional study was distributed to all dentists working in Palestine (West Bank). The questionnaire contains five parts; the first section explores demographics such as age, gender and place of study. The second section has two parts: the first one has nine questions about knowledge of treatment approach in different dental situations; the second part contains three questions about treatment approaches for different emergency dental Problems. The third section shows antibiotic prescription habits and perceived indication with fourteen questions. The fourth section contains seven questions included education about antibiotic and its resistance; and the last section shows dentals practice antibiotic prescriptions with twelve questions. The data resulting from this study will inform us about the level of antibiotics abuse in the West Bank dental sector. Moreover, it will help us define the level of knowledge and attitude of the dentists toward antibiotic prescription in their personal clinics and practice, forming an image of the additional needed education on the antibiotic prescription guidelines.