Attitude of Dental Students towards the Specialty of Oral Pathology: A Questionnaire-Based Survey

Abstract

Background: As the dental specialty dealing with the causes, processes, and effects of illnesses impacting the oral and maxillofacial regions, oral and maxillofacial pathology plays a crucial role in bridging the gap between dentistry and medicine. Dental students do not make up a harmonious class; there will always be a mix of some with higher curriculum understanding than others. Aim of this study: Given the rising incidence of oral cancer, this study was carried out to identify dental students' attitudes toward oral pathology and how to improve the likelihood of them choosing it as their future specialty. Methods: This study was carried out at the College of Dentistry, University of Baghdad; it involved 240 dental students. Data were collected and analyzed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Results: The results showed that 66.9% of students faced difficulties in understanding the topics in pathology classes, and only 22.3% of them are interested in being a pathologist. In conclusion, studying oral pathology presents various challenges for dentistry students.