Adherence to the current guidelines on antibiotic prescription among dental practitioners: A national survey.

<h4>Background</h4>The global emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance jeopardise health-care advances and life expectancy. Following the latest antibiotic guidelines is crucial to combat this issue. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the knowledge regarding antibi...

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Main Authors: Hoda M Abdellatif, Eman I Alsagob, Mamata Hebbal, Sree Lalita Kotha, Mohammed Aldossary, Atrey J Pai Khot, Anu Sara Varghese, Basma Yahya, Ghadah Alajlan, Lamar Alshamrani
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2025-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0320528
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author Hoda M Abdellatif
Eman I Alsagob
Mamata Hebbal
Sree Lalita Kotha
Mohammed Aldossary
Atrey J Pai Khot
Anu Sara Varghese
Basma Yahya
Ghadah Alajlan
Lamar Alshamrani
author_facet Hoda M Abdellatif
Eman I Alsagob
Mamata Hebbal
Sree Lalita Kotha
Mohammed Aldossary
Atrey J Pai Khot
Anu Sara Varghese
Basma Yahya
Ghadah Alajlan
Lamar Alshamrani
author_sort Hoda M Abdellatif
collection DOAJ
description <h4>Background</h4>The global emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance jeopardise health-care advances and life expectancy. Following the latest antibiotic guidelines is crucial to combat this issue. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the knowledge regarding antibiotics prescription and investigate the evidence-based practices among dental practitioners in Saudi Arabia.<h4>Method</h4>This cross-sectional study was conducted during November 2020 to April 2021 in Saudi Arabia. A self-designed validated questionnaire comprising 27 close ended knowledge-based questions and 9 practice-based question was administered among dentists working in various settings through online generated link. A pilot study in 20 dental specialists and consultants was conducted prior to the study, to arise at sample size of 318. Reliability of the questionnaire was assessed with Cronbach's α value of 0.85, face validity of 84%, and content validity ratio of 0.78. The knowledge and practice score were graded based on quartile derivatives. The data was analyzed using descriptive analysis, chi square analysis, correlation, and regression by IBM SPSS® Statistics for Windows, Version 28.0. Armonk, NY: IBM Corp.<h4>Results</h4>The average age of the participants was 36.3 ±  5.9 years, and their average experience was about 7.3 years. The mean knowledge score was 19.62 ±  4.28 with government employees scoring higher (20.03 ±  3.90) compared to private practitioners and academicians. Clinicians with less than five years of experience had significantly higher knowledge scores (p =  0.002). The majority of the participants, 218 (68.55%), had good practices while 100 (31.44%) participants showed poor practices. Moreover, only half of the participants could correctly identify the majority of case-based scenarios related to antibiotic prescriptions.<h4>Conclusion</h4>Dentists in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have a good level of knowledge and practices on antibiotics prescription. However, some aspects of poor practices particularly among private sector clinicians necessitate the launching of educational campaigns, interventions and provision of latest guidelines for prudent use of antibiotics in dental practice.
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spelling doaj-art-ba68edd5d9254766bd8a068d2b9d72472025-08-20T02:16:19ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032025-01-01203e032052810.1371/journal.pone.0320528Adherence to the current guidelines on antibiotic prescription among dental practitioners: A national survey.Hoda M AbdellatifEman I AlsagobMamata HebbalSree Lalita KothaMohammed AldossaryAtrey J Pai KhotAnu Sara VargheseBasma YahyaGhadah AlajlanLamar Alshamrani<h4>Background</h4>The global emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance jeopardise health-care advances and life expectancy. Following the latest antibiotic guidelines is crucial to combat this issue. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the knowledge regarding antibiotics prescription and investigate the evidence-based practices among dental practitioners in Saudi Arabia.<h4>Method</h4>This cross-sectional study was conducted during November 2020 to April 2021 in Saudi Arabia. A self-designed validated questionnaire comprising 27 close ended knowledge-based questions and 9 practice-based question was administered among dentists working in various settings through online generated link. A pilot study in 20 dental specialists and consultants was conducted prior to the study, to arise at sample size of 318. Reliability of the questionnaire was assessed with Cronbach's α value of 0.85, face validity of 84%, and content validity ratio of 0.78. The knowledge and practice score were graded based on quartile derivatives. The data was analyzed using descriptive analysis, chi square analysis, correlation, and regression by IBM SPSS® Statistics for Windows, Version 28.0. Armonk, NY: IBM Corp.<h4>Results</h4>The average age of the participants was 36.3 ±  5.9 years, and their average experience was about 7.3 years. The mean knowledge score was 19.62 ±  4.28 with government employees scoring higher (20.03 ±  3.90) compared to private practitioners and academicians. Clinicians with less than five years of experience had significantly higher knowledge scores (p =  0.002). The majority of the participants, 218 (68.55%), had good practices while 100 (31.44%) participants showed poor practices. Moreover, only half of the participants could correctly identify the majority of case-based scenarios related to antibiotic prescriptions.<h4>Conclusion</h4>Dentists in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have a good level of knowledge and practices on antibiotics prescription. However, some aspects of poor practices particularly among private sector clinicians necessitate the launching of educational campaigns, interventions and provision of latest guidelines for prudent use of antibiotics in dental practice.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0320528
spellingShingle Hoda M Abdellatif
Eman I Alsagob
Mamata Hebbal
Sree Lalita Kotha
Mohammed Aldossary
Atrey J Pai Khot
Anu Sara Varghese
Basma Yahya
Ghadah Alajlan
Lamar Alshamrani
Adherence to the current guidelines on antibiotic prescription among dental practitioners: A national survey.
PLoS ONE
title Adherence to the current guidelines on antibiotic prescription among dental practitioners: A national survey.
title_full Adherence to the current guidelines on antibiotic prescription among dental practitioners: A national survey.
title_fullStr Adherence to the current guidelines on antibiotic prescription among dental practitioners: A national survey.
title_full_unstemmed Adherence to the current guidelines on antibiotic prescription among dental practitioners: A national survey.
title_short Adherence to the current guidelines on antibiotic prescription among dental practitioners: A national survey.
title_sort adherence to the current guidelines on antibiotic prescription among dental practitioners a national survey
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0320528
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