AWARENESS, KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICES OF THE USE OF DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY AMONG A GROUP OF EGYPTIAN DENTAL STUDENTS AND PEDIATRIC DENTISTS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Introduction: Efforts toward incorporating technological advances in dentistryhave been successful and the trend toward further digitization is growing. Aim: Thisresearch aimed to evaluate the awareness, understanding, perceptions, and practicesconcerning the application of digital technology in dentistry among dental studentsand pediatric dentists in Egypt. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional online selfadministeredsurvey. The survey was delivered as a Google Form to 564 participantsincluding a group of final-year dental students and pediatric dentists in Egypt.Results: Out of 564 responses, most students (81.7%) students and pediatric dentists(89.9%) were significantly familiar with digital dentistry (p.005). 54.9% of students and74.9% of dentists significantly reported attending educational courses related to digitaldentistry p < 0.05). Only 19.8% of students and 23.1% of dentists reported attendingCAD/CAM training programs. Both students (93.8%) and dentists (98.0%) agreedsignificantly on digital dentistry’s precision over conventional methods (p=0.009)they also agreed on digital dentistry’s time-saving impact. Most students (94.9%) anddentists (98.0%) believed significantly in digital dentistry’s enhancement of patientcare quality (p=0.042). 54.5% of students felt skillful in using technology comparedto dentists (41.7%), showing a statistically significant difference (p=0.002) Higherproportion of students (89.9%) envisioned significantly using digital dentistry in theirfuture careers compared to dentists (79.2%) (p=0.001). Remarkably, 100% of studentsand dentists unanimously agreed on the importance of increasing knowledge in thisarea.Conclusion: Including digital dentistry education in undergraduate programs andproviding specialized training for pediatric dentists can help bridge knowledge gaps