Radiation safety knowledge and practices among pediatric dentist’s in Bengaluru city- A cross sectional survey

Introduction: Intraoral radiographic examination is an inevitable and integral part of Pediatric dental practice. Long hours of practice in closed clinical set up and continuous exposure to negligibly low dose radiation on a long term basis pose a potential source of health hazard among Pedodontists. Hence optimization, dose limitation and radiation safety practice is very much essential for the protection of the child and the Pedodontist. Aim: To determine the knowledge about radiation safety and to assess radiation safety practices undertaken by practicing Pediatric Dentists in Bengaluru city. Materials and methods: A questionnaire survey was conducted amongst practicing Pediatric dentists in Bengaluru city. A questionnaire containing 29 questions was distributed among 80 Pedodontists in dental clinics and practicing academicians in various Dental colleges in Bengaluru to obtain information regarding demographic details, knowledge about radiation safety, and radiation safety practices. The responses were scored, the results were tabulated and subjected to statistical analysis Results: From the study,it was found that 53% of the practicing Pedodontists had good knowledge on radiation safety. Female Pedodontists had better knowledge and radiation safety practices than males and Pedodontists seem to neglect radiation safety with increasing years of practice. Conclusion: Despite having good awareness about radiation safety and the need for a radiation safe practice, Pedodontists in Bengaluru city have failed to implement the same in their routine clinical practice. Therefore by avoiding negligence towards radiation safety practice we can prevent the cumulative adverse effects of radiation.