Abstract :
Context: Viral hepatitis has become a silent epidemic and a major public health problem worldwide. Among the viral hepatitis, Hepatitis C is one of most common dreaded infectious disease. Hepatitis C infections can be a potential occupational hazard for dental personnel.
Objective: To assess the knowledge and attitude related to Hepatitis C among the dental interns.
Materials and Methods: Descriptive cross- sectional survey was conducted using structured, selfadministered, 32 items questionnaire among 147 dental interns in Davangere city. Descriptive analysis of the data was done. The attitude and knowledge of dental interns was assessed by using Chi-Square Test.
Results: Of the total studied individuals, 2 students (1.4%) showed poor knowledge, 18 students (12.2%) moderate knowledge and 125 students (86.4%) had good knowledge of hepatitis C. Furthermore, 124 participants (84.4%) demonstrated positive attitude, and 22 participants (15.0%) had negative attitude.
Conclusion: Majority of the participants in the present study had good knowledge and positive attitude towards treating such patients. As the study was only conducted in two dental colleges in Davangere city. Therefore, the results are obviously generalizable only among this sample.
Keyword :
Knowledge, Attitude, Hepatitis C, Dental Interns, Infection.