Knowledge, Perception And Practice About Toothbrush Sterilization Among Dental Students And Faculty In Chennai, South India - A Cross Sectional Study

Toothbrushing is generally used as an oral hygiene tool to keep up oral health. Tooth brushes act as a reservoir for many germs. The aim of this study is to know the knowledge perception and practice of toothbrush sterilization among dental students and faculty in chennai city.   MATERIALS AND METHODS This study is based on questionnaires among dental students and faculty in a private dental college. A pre-validated questionnaire was prepared and mailed in the form of google forms for the participants. The results were obtained and statistically analysed using SPSS software version 23. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were performed to present the responses.   RESULT Nearly 73.53% of the respondents are aware about toothbrush sterilization. About 64.7% of the population used boiling water for sterilization and 19.61% used ultraviolet (UV) light for their toothbrush sterilization. Nearly 38.23% of the population believe that Escherichia coli in tooth brushes causes diarrhoea. The difference in the knowledge, perception and practice of toothbrush sterilization among male and female participants was not significant (p>0.05).   CONCLUSION Though dental students and faculties are aware about toothbrush sterilization they are not practicing it in their day to day life. Awareness in this regard needs to be created among the dental students, faculties to inculcate the same to their patients.