Evaluation of knowledge, experience and preparedness on management of medical emergencies among dental practitioners in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Background: Some life-threatening medical emergencies do occur in dental setups. Hence, timely diagnosis and prompt management of these conditions by skilled dental practitioners can save lives of patients. Aim: To evaluate the dental practitioners' knowledge, experience and preparedness regarding medical emergencies on dental chair. Methods: Cross section descriptive survey involving 105 public and private dental practitioners in Dar es Salaam City. Pre-tested structured questionnaire gathering information pertaining to socio-demographic characteristics, experience on medical emergencies, knowledge on management of medical emergencies and preparedness for managing medical emergencies was used as a data collection tool. Results: Out of 105 participants (34, 32.4%) reported to have encountered one or more medical emergencies during the past four years. Syncope (23.8%), hypoglycemic attacks (12.4%), and post extraction bleeding (10.5%) were the most reported encountered medical emergencies by the participants. Knowledge on emergency drug kit and the confidence during using/administering the drugs and equipments was low. Medical emergencies trainings were undertaken by 15.2% respondents: However, all of them had a desire for further medical emergencies training. Conclusion: The study revealed that syncope is the commonest medical emergency event. Dental practitioners had a superficial knowledge of medical emergencies, drugs and equipments.