Dentists' perspective on tobacco cessation and counseling in Jeddah

Introduction: A major cause of death on a global scale is tobacco and in fact the biggest preventable cause of mortality and illness worldwide. The World Health Organization estimates that there are 1100 million regular smokers worldwide and they are increasing alarmingly. Dentists play a pivotal role in the prevention of tobacco use as patients approach dentists for cosmetic reasons. We planned this study to find the experience of dentists on tobacco cessation and counseling. Methods: We designed the study as an analytical cross-sectional study. The data were collected through a questionnaire using Google Forms targeting all the dentists in Jeddah. The questionnaire Google link was sent to their WhatsApp and other electronic means. Consent from the dentists was obtained prior to collecting information from the dentists. Results: 89.9% of dentists agreed that it is the duty of every dentist to advise the patient on tobacco cessation and 10.1% disagreed. 81.7% of dentists agreed that all dentists have the capability of doing tobacco cessation practices. Seventy-eight percent of dentists agreed that dentists are not presently well prepared to assist patients with tobacco cessation in contrast with 22% who disagree. The scientific evidence relating to the burden of oral diseases has always been attributable to tobacco use, and a well-structured dental teaching curriculum for the dentists and the auxiliaries concentrating on oral cancer education and tobacco cessation interventions has to be emphasized in the Kingdom for the dentists (28). Dentists require formal training to do tobacco cessation successfully to reach a major goal of a “tobacco-free society.” Conclusion: There should be an emphasis on formal training being an effective tool to provide guidelines to the dentist and auxiliaries in tobacco cessation and counseling of the patients in the dental clinic.