Authors: Mohamed Hayder Abdalla Hashim, Rui Zo, Hayder A. Hashim Mohamed.
Aim: The study aimed to assess and compare the knowledge and awareness of Sudanese and Chinese general dental practitioners and orthodontists regarding Cone-Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT).
Subject and method: A total of 294 participants were enrolled, predominantly consisting of Dentist under 30 years old, with a majority being female (73.8%). Around half of the participants were Sudanese (52.4%), and the rest were Chinese (47.6%). The majority were general practitioners (74.8%), with the remaining 25.2% being orthodontists. It was conducted as a descriptive cross-sectional hospital-based study, utilizing a questionnaire to collect data on participants' knowledge and awareness of CBCT.
Results: The study found that more than 200 participants had poor knowledge of CBCT, defined as scoring less than 50% on knowledge questions. Notably, 80% of Chinese participants and 69.5% of Sudanese participants had poor knowledge, indicating a significant association between nationality and knowledge level (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: CBCT represents an advanced imaging technique with considerable potential in dentistry, a fact increasingly recognized by dental specialists. However, the study revealed a significant gap in knowledge and awareness of CBCT applications among participants, with a particular emphasis on the need for training in this field. Nationality and job position were also found to be significantly associated with knowledge levels, underscoring the importance of addressing these disparities in future education and training initiatives.