Attitudes of Dental Students Towards HIV+ Patients: A Multi-Center Survey Among Italian Universities.

IF 2.9 4区教育学 Q3 DENTISTRY, ORAL SURGERY & MEDICINE

European Journal of Dental Education Pub Date : 2026-09-11 DOI:10.1111/eje.70302

Michele Giuliani, Cosimo Rupe, Silvio Abati, Paolo Arduino, Lorenzo Azzi, Elena Bardellini, Giulia Bardini, Lavinia Barone, Selene Barone, Maria Eleonora Bizzoca, Giuseppina Campisi, Claudia Caravetta, Raffaella Castagnola, Marco Cicciù, Maria Contaldo, Francesca Conti, Noemi Coppola, Massimo Cordaro, Elisabetta Cotti, Roberto Di Lenarda, Davide Farronato, Gianfranco Favia, Olga Anna Furchì, Andrea Gabusi, Alessio Gambino, Marco Gargari, Ilaria Giovannacci, Davide Gissi, Amerigo Giudice, Luigi Laino, Gaetano La Mantia, Luisa Limongelli, Lorenzo Lo Muzio, Alessandra Majorana, Mirko Martelli, Marco Mascitti, Michele Davide Mignogna, Pietro Montagna, Pier Francesco Nocini, Romeo Patini, Matteo Pellegrini, Monica Pentenero, Antonio Rapani, Silvana Rizzo, Umberto Romeo, Vincenzo Ronsivalle, Diana Russo, Andrea Santarelli, Francesco Scilla, Rosario Serpico, Francesco Spadari, Gianluca Tenore, Ludovica Vassalli, Paolo Vescovi, Gioele Gioco, Carlo Lajolo

{"title":"Attitudes of Dental Students Towards HIV+ Patients: A Multi-Center Survey Among Italian Universities.","authors":"Michele Giuliani, Cosimo Rupe, Silvio Abati, Paolo Arduino, Lorenzo Azzi, Elena Bardellini, Giulia Bardini, Lavinia Barone, Selene Barone, Maria Eleonora Bizzoca, Giuseppina Campisi, Claudia Caravetta, Raffaella Castagnola, Marco Cicciù, Maria Contaldo, Francesca Conti, Noemi Coppola, Massimo Cordaro, Elisabetta Cotti, Roberto Di Lenarda, Davide Farronato, Gianfranco Favia, Olga Anna Furchì, Andrea Gabusi, Alessio Gambino, Marco Gargari, Ilaria Giovannacci, Davide Gissi, Amerigo Giudice, Luigi Laino, Gaetano La Mantia, Luisa Limongelli, Lorenzo Lo Muzio, Alessandra Majorana, Mirko Martelli, Marco Mascitti, Michele Davide Mignogna, Pietro Montagna, Pier Francesco Nocini, Romeo Patini, Matteo Pellegrini, Monica Pentenero, Antonio Rapani, Silvana Rizzo, Umberto Romeo, Vincenzo Ronsivalle, Diana Russo, Andrea Santarelli, Francesco Scilla, Rosario Serpico, Francesco Spadari, Gianluca Tenore, Ludovica Vassalli, Paolo Vescovi, Gioele Gioco, Carlo Lajolo","doi":"10.1111/eje.70302","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Aims: To evaluate the attitudes of Italian dental students towards HIV-infected patients and explore factors influencing discriminatory behaviour.Methods: This observational, multicentric survey analysed responses from dental students across Italian Dental Schools. The questionnaire covered demographic data, interactions with HIV-positive patients, knowledge of HIV infection, and adherence to preventive protocols.Results: A total of 470 questionnaires were analysed. Thirty two students (6.8%) reported discriminatory attitudes, with the highest prevalence in Northern Italy (9.8%), compared to 6.5% in Central Italy and 0.9% in Southern Italy (p = 0.006). Nearly half of the respondents (231/470) had been asked to treat HIV-positive patients, with requests significantly more frequent in Northern Italy (65.4%) than in Central (43.8%) and Southern Italy (22.7%) (p = 0.001). Students who treated HIV-positive patients as first operators demonstrated a higher likelihood of discriminatory behaviour (OR = 43.9, 95% CI: 5.9-327.8, p = 0.009) compared to second operators (OR = 13.4, 95% CI: 1.47-121.7, p = 0.02). Stress perception during these treatments correlated with discriminatory attitudes (ANOVA test, p = 0.008). Despite these findings, most students showed strong knowledge about HIV, with 99.8% identifying correct transmission routes and 85.6% aware of post-exposure prophylaxis. Additionally, 91.8% expressed interest in further education on HIV-dentistry topics.Conclusions: The findings suggest that Italian dental students are generally well-prepared to treat HIV-positive patients without discrimination. Practical training fosters confidence, as evidenced by the high willingness to provide care even among students with no prior experience in treating HIV-positive individuals. However, geographic disparities and the influence of stress on discriminatory behaviour highlight areas for improvement in dental education.","PeriodicalId":50488,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Dental Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9000,"publicationDate":"2026-09-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"European Journal of Dental Education","FirstCategoryId":"95","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1111/eje.70302","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"DENTISTRY, ORAL SURGERY & MEDICINE","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Aims: To evaluate the attitudes of Italian dental students towards HIV-infected patients and explore factors influencing discriminatory behaviour.

Methods: This observational, multicentric survey analysed responses from dental students across Italian Dental Schools. The questionnaire covered demographic data, interactions with HIV-positive patients, knowledge of HIV infection, and adherence to preventive protocols.

Results: A total of 470 questionnaires were analysed. Thirty two students (6.8%) reported discriminatory attitudes, with the highest prevalence in Northern Italy (9.8%), compared to 6.5% in Central Italy and 0.9% in Southern Italy (p = 0.006). Nearly half of the respondents (231/470) had been asked to treat HIV-positive patients, with requests significantly more frequent in Northern Italy (65.4%) than in Central (43.8%) and Southern Italy (22.7%) (p = 0.001). Students who treated HIV-positive patients as first operators demonstrated a higher likelihood of discriminatory behaviour (OR = 43.9, 95% CI: 5.9-327.8, p = 0.009) compared to second operators (OR = 13.4, 95% CI: 1.47-121.7, p = 0.02). Stress perception during these treatments correlated with discriminatory attitudes (ANOVA test, p = 0.008). Despite these findings, most students showed strong knowledge about HIV, with 99.8% identifying correct transmission routes and 85.6% aware of post-exposure prophylaxis. Additionally, 91.8% expressed interest in further education on HIV-dentistry topics.

Conclusions: The findings suggest that Italian dental students are generally well-prepared to treat HIV-positive patients without discrimination. Practical training fosters confidence, as evidenced by the high willingness to provide care even among students with no prior experience in treating HIV-positive individuals. However, geographic disparities and the influence of stress on discriminatory behaviour highlight areas for improvement in dental education.

查看原文本刊更多论文

牙科学生对艾滋病患者的态度：意大利大学多中心调查。

目的：了解意大利牙科学生对艾滋病患者的态度，探讨影响歧视行为的因素。方法：这项观察性的多中心调查分析了意大利牙科学校牙科学生的反应。调查问卷包括人口统计数据、与艾滋病毒阳性患者的互动、对艾滋病毒感染的了解以及对预防方案的遵守情况。结果：共分析问卷470份。32名学生（6.8%）报告了歧视态度，意大利北部的患病率最高（9.8%），意大利中部为6.5%，意大利南部为0.9% （p = 0.006）。近一半的受访者（231/470）被要求治疗艾滋病毒阳性患者，意大利北部（65.4%）的请求明显高于中部（43.8%）和意大利南部（22.7%）（p = 0.001）。将hiv阳性患者作为第一操作者的学生比第二操作者表现出更高的歧视行为可能性（OR = 43.9, 95% CI: 5.9-327.8, p = 0.009）（OR = 13.4, 95% CI: 1.47-121.7, p = 0.02）。治疗过程中的压力感知与歧视态度相关（方差分析，p = 0.008）。尽管有这些发现，大多数学生对艾滋病毒有很强的了解，99.8%的人知道正确的传播途径，85.6%的人知道接触后的预防措施。此外，91.8%的人表示有兴趣继续接受有关艾滋病毒牙科主题的教育。结论：研究结果表明，意大利牙科学生普遍做好了充分的准备，可以不受歧视地治疗艾滋病毒阳性患者。实践培训可以培养信心，这一点可以从以下事实得到证明：即使在没有治疗艾滋病毒阳性个体经验的学生中，他们也非常愿意提供护理。然而，地域差异和压力对歧视行为的影响突出了牙科教育有待改进的领域。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

European Journal of Dental Education 医学-学科教育

CiteScore

4.10

自引率

16.70%

发文量

127

审稿时长

6-12 weeks

期刊介绍： The aim of the European Journal of Dental Education is to publish original topical and review articles of the highest quality in the field of Dental Education. The Journal seeks to disseminate widely the latest information on curriculum development teaching methodologies assessment techniques and quality assurance in the fields of dental undergraduate and postgraduate education and dental auxiliary personnel training. The scope includes the dental educational aspects of the basic medical sciences the behavioural sciences the interface with medical education information technology and distance learning and educational audit. Papers embodying the results of high-quality educational research of relevance to dentistry are particularly encouraged as are evidence-based reports of novel and established educational programmes and their outcomes.