Evaluation of dental students’ awareness about intraoral scanners

Çakmak B., Yıldız E., Tortop T.

PLOS ONE, cilt.20, sa.10, ss.1-10, 2025 (SCI-Expanded)

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 20 Sayı: 10
  • Basım Tarihi: 2025
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1371/journal.pone.0335940
  • Dergi Adı: PLOS ONE
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Food Science & Technology Abstracts, Scopus, Agricultural & Environmental Science Database, Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Academic Search Premier, Animal Behavior Abstracts, Aquatic Science & Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA), BIOSIS, Biotechnology Research Abstracts, Chemical Abstracts Core, Index Islamicus, Linguistic Bibliography, MEDLINE, Pollution Abstracts, Psycinfo, zbMATH, Directory of Open Access Journals
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.1-10
  • Gazi Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Background

There are a few studies evaluating dental students’ knowledge and awareness of intraoral scanners. This study aims to evaluate and compare the knowledge and awareness of levels 3rd, 4th, and 5th-grade dental students regarding intraoral scanners and their use in orthodontics.

Methods

A survey adapted from similar studies was administered to a total of 278 volunteer undergraduate students [comprising 3rd (n = 94), 4th (n = 88), and 5th-grade (n = 96)] to assess their awareness of intraoral scanners. Descriptive statistics, including frequencies and percentages, were used to analyze the variables within the scope of the study. The Fisher–Freeman–Halton exact test was employed to compare responses across different academic years. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results

Of the participants, 33.81% were 3rd-grade, 31.65% were 4th-grade, and 34.53% were 5th-grade dental students. There was no significant difference in the distribution of participants across academic grades (p > 0.05). Among the students, 96.81% of the 3rd-grade, 89.77% of the 4th-grade, and 83.33% of the 5th-grade students reported that they had never used an intraoral scanner (p < 0,05). A higher proportion of 3rd-grade students (71.28%) believed that IOSs were used in the treatment of skeletal Class II malocclusions and the fabrication of maxillary expansion appliances, compared to the other grade groups. In contrast, 5th-grade students more frequently associated IOS usage with indirect bonding procedures (63.54%) (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

Students in the 4th and 5th grades demonstrated a greater level of knowledge compared to 3rd-grade students. It is recommended that practical training opportunities be expanded and the dental curriculum be revised accordingly to support hands-on experience with intraoral scanners.