The prevalence of hepatitis C infection among the dentists of Yazd and assessment of their knowledge about hepatitis

Abstract

Statement of Problem: Hepatitis C is a relatively common infection which can be transmitted through"naccidental inoculation; consequently dentists are highly at the risk of exposure to this virus."nPurpose: The aim of this study was to determine prevalence of Hepatitis C among the dentists of Yazd and to"nevaluate their knowledge about the existing ways for the transmission and prevention of this infection."nMaterials and Methods: In this descriptive- analytic study which was performed periodically (2002), the"nsera of all dentists practicing in Yazd were tested (104 samples) in the laboratory of Yazd blood transfusion"norganization initially by 1st generation of Elisa for Anti HCV followed by Riba on positive samples to"nconfirm the results. Meanwhile a questionnaire assessing their knowledge about hepatitis was completed the"nby the dentists. Data were analyzed by ANOVA and t test."nResults: None of the one hundred and four samples of sera were positive for Anti HCV. Mean score of their"nknowledge was 14.80 (of 20). The knowledge of 92.1% of them was at moderate to high level. No significant"ndifference was observed between Yazd's dentists knowledge about hepatitis C in different age, gender and"nlength of professional experience groups."nConclusion: According to this study, the absence of HCV among the dentists of Yazd is mainly attributed to"nthe low prevalence of HCV infection among general population, though it can also be an indicative of the"nknowledge and excellent performance of the dentists to prevent the transmission of infection through blood"nand saliva.

Keywords

• Dentists