Awareness among health care professionals regarding interrelationship between diabetes mellitus and periodontal diseases: A step towards interprofessional collaborative practice

The objective of the study was to assess the level of awareness among health care professionals regarding interrelationships between diabetes mellitus (DM) and periodontal diseases. A self-administered, structured questionnaire based on scientific literature, and practice was distributed among 100 non-oral health care professionals (NOHCP) and 100 oral-health care professionals (OHCP) for assessment of their awareness regarding DM and periodontitis interrelationship (DPI). One hundred fifty-four (154) participants who responded and returned the questionnaire were interviewed to avoid any obscurity pertinent to the questionnaire and to obtain their suggestions or recommendations. Twenty-seven participant’s questionnaires were excluded due to non-availability for interview to clarify the information given. Responses of 127 participants were finally statistically analyzed. Almost 79% of OHCPs were aware of the DPI. About 9% of OHCPs did not agree with DPI and 11% of them were “unaware” about the DPI. Similarly, about 65% of NOHCPs were aware of the DPI. About 15% of OHCPs did not agree with DPI and 19% of OHCPs were “unaware” about the DPI. A limited awareness was observed among health care professionals participating in the present study for DPI, highlighting a gap of knowledge, attitude, and practice for DPI, which was higher among NOHCP than OHCPs.