Background: Although Saudi Arabia is considered economically stable with a high literacy rate and health care is well organized with even remote places having adequate healthcare facilities, people are still unaware of the implant as an option for the treatment of missing teeth. It is important to realize if the patients have enough information about dental implants as a treatment form for the replacement of missing teeth. This survey analysis aimed to assess patient awareness and acceptance of dental implants as a treatment option for the replacement of missing teeth.
Methodology: A self-administered structured questionnaire was distributed among patients in Riyadh, including questions on the use of dental implants as replacement therapy for missing teeth in addition to sociodemographic data. Data analysis was done using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences program version 22.
Results: There was a significant difference between the perception of the participants over different age groups (p-value < 0.001), where participants aging between 31 and 50 years old had the highest level of knowledge (67.2%). Furthermore, students showed a significantly higher level of knowledge (p-value < 0.001). In addition, responders with a university degree showed a significantly higher level of knowledge (p-value < 0.001) (45.3%). Finally, males showed a significantly higher level of knowledge than females (p-value = 0.007) (64.1%).
Conclusion: Dental implants are widely accepted among patients, with dentists being their main source of information. Further studies in other areas of Saudi Arabia are needed.
Key words: Acceptance, awareness, perceived cost, dental implants, treatment modality, replacement of missing teeth
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