Bridging Clinical Practice and Research: A Cross-Sectional Study of Swiss Private Practitioners' Perspectives on Research Priorities in Prosthodontics.

Abstract

Purpose: To explore private practitioners' perspectives on participation in clinical dental research, identify perceived research priorities, and assess current and anticipated future use of research information sources in reconstructive dentistry.

Materials and methods: This cross-sectional survey included dentists practicing in Switzerland in private practice or academic settings. An anonymous online questionnaire with 13 structured items was distributed between June and November 2024 via professional meetings and alumni networks. Survey domains included demographics, current research involvement, interest in future research participation, research priorities, and use of research information sources. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Paired comparisons between current and anticipated future research information sources were analyzed using McNemar's exact test, with p-values adjusted for multiple testing using the Benjamini-Hochberg false discovery rate procedure. Ranking data were summarized using mean ranks. Analyses were exploratory and hypothesis-generating.

Results: Fifty-six dentists completed the survey (median years since graduation: 18 [Q1-Q3: 7-23]). One-third of respondents (33.9%) reported current involvement in research, while 46.4% expressed interest in future participation, particularly in clinical trials. Anticipated future use of colleagues, study clubs/alumni networks, PubMed, and continuing education as research information sources decreased significantly compared with current use (all adjusted p≤0.032), whereas reliance on journals and social media remained stable. Ranking analyses indicated that predictability was the highest priority in therapy-related decision-making, a trusting patient-clinician relationship was most important in everyday practice, and patient satisfaction was the primary determinant of treatment success.

Conclusions: Private practitioners showed moderate interest in clinical research participation and emphasized clinically relevant, practice-oriented research priorities. Integrating practitioners' perspectives may help align prosthodontic research more closely with real-world clinical needs.