Knowledge and Awareness of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) among Chinese dental students——a comparison study

Backgroud This study aimed to measure the knowledge and awareness of COVID-19 among Chinese dental students during the global outbreak recently. Method A descriptive cross-sectional study was performed among dental students and nonmedical college students in China. All the participants were required to anonymously answer a reliable online questionnaire, which covered 3 different fields of COVID-19. Average scores of dental students (D group), including junior (JD group) and senior dental students (SD group), and nonmedical college students (N group) were compared respectively. Chi-square test and independent sample T test were taken for statistical analysis with SPSS.12. Results Totally 497 questionnaires were collected, including 224 from dental students and 273 from non-medical students. The overall average score was 57±19.2. The average scores of dental students were 64.5±18. The D group had significantly higher scores on the total score, section scores, and 20 questions respectively than with the N group. No significant differences were found on 5 questions. Compared with the N group, the SD group won on all three sections while JD group failed to win on the diagnose section. Conclusion Although the dental student showed good awareness regarding the clinical aspects of COVID-19 than non-medical students, there are still some weakness in the part of treatment and prevention, which need to be strengthened for better prepare during work. Besides, the low accuracy rate of lower grade dental students is also worth noting.