Knowledge and Performance of Dentists and Senior Dental Students Regarding the Treatment of Patients Taking Bisphosphonates in Bandar Abbas City, Iran

Bisphosphonates (BP) have recently been used in the treatment of bone diseases. The BP-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) is a severe complication of long-term usage of BP and can lead to serious consequences. This study aimed to evaluate the level of awareness and performance of dentists and senior dental students in Bandar Abbas, Iran, regarding the treatment of patients who take BP. In this cross-sectional study, a questionnaire, based on the standard guidelines, was handed out to dentists and senior dental students in Bandar Abbas city. Variables, such as gender, age, level of awareness, and performance when treating the aforementioned patients were taken into account. The collected data were analyzed using Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Levene, chi-squared, and independent t-test. The performance index was 11.8±2.82 in dentists and 14.29±5.8 in senior dental students which indicates a significant difference between them in terms of performance when treating BRONJ in patients taking BP. However, no significant difference was observed in terms of their knowledge.  The level of performance and knowledge in most dentists and dental students was intermediate and policies should be made to raise their abilities.