Abstract
Background: Through years, dental professionals have faced many myths inculcated in the minds of patients which pass from one generation to another. In today's evolving environment of evidence-based dentistry, these anecdotal observations do not withstand scrutiny.
Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of myths associated with dentistry and oral cancer-related habits among outpatients visiting different hospitals in Kashmir, India.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out among the outpatients visiting 3 district hospitals of Kashmir, India. All the patients reporting to these hospitals; between the age group of 25 and 50 years, mentally sound, and those who were willing to participate were included in this questionnaire-based study. The study was carried out for a period of 3 weeks (1 week in each hospital) with 20-25 subjects per day, making a final sample of 520 subjects. A self-administered, pre-tested questionnaire was hand-delivered to the subjects and the duly filled questionnaire was collected on the same day from the respondents. The questionnaire consisted of 16 questions related to myths in dentistry in addition to the demographic data such as age, gender, and qualification of the respondents.
Results: Most of the respondents were found to be the strong believers of various myths irrespective of their qualification level.
Conclusion: The results of this study show that generally people believe in various myths in dentistry which results in poor oral health. This might be due to lack of knowledge and awareness about dental health and its importance.