Knowledge about temporomandibular disorders in stomatology students at a peruvian university

Abstract

Introduction. Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) compromise the function of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and masticatory muscles, leading to painful symptoms that negatively impact patients' quality of life. Previous research has shown that knowledge about these disorders is limited among dental students and professionals. Objective. To evaluate the knowledge of temporomandibular disorders in stomatology students at a Peruvian university in 2023. Materials and Methods. A cross-sectional study was carried out with a sample of 210 stomatology students between the fifth and ninth academic cycle. A 15-question questionnaire to measure knowledge about the etiology, diagnosis and treatment of TMDs was applied. Results. The average age of the students was 23.20±3.46. Also, 61,0% of the students were female, while 27.6% belonged to the VIII cycle. The general knowledge of TTM was fair (50.5%), 83.3% presented poor knowledge in the etiology dimension. There was no association between knowledge of TMD and variables such as age, sex and academic cycle of the participants. Conclusion. Knowledge about TMD among stomatology students was regular and not associated to age, sex and academic cycle.