Comparison of the attitudes of hospital dentists and dental students in Glasgow, UK and Los Angeles, USA towards treatment of AIDS and hepatitis B patients.

Abstract

A transcultural comparison of the attitudes of hospital dental practitioners and final year dental students in Glasgow, Scotland and Los Angeles, USA was made to assess their attitudes towards treatment of AIDS and hepatitis B patients. Almost all of the respondents were aware of the facts related to spread of AIDS via saliva and blood and the major oral manifestations of AIDS. Surprisingly, a significant proportion of respondents in both countries said they will not attend their dentist if the latter treats AIDS patients and significantly more Americans thought that AIDS transmission was likely in the dental clinic. An overwhelming majority thought specially trained dentists should be employed to treat AIDS patients while the majority of Americans, as compared with Scots surmised that AIDS is a serious threat to public health. In general, the attitudes of the two survey populations towards the AIDS epidemic and attendant problems was similar although the Scots were more complacent than their American counterparts, probably due to the less immediacy of the AIDS problem in Scotland.