Knowledge and Attitudes of Dentists in Afyonkarahisar City Center Regarding Traditional and Complementary Medicine Practices: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study

Objective: The increasing tendency towards traditional and complementary medicine (TCM) practices in Türkiye and the world in recent years has made it important for dentists, who are important members of the healthcare team, to know TCM and guide their patients correctly. This study aims to evaluate the knowledge and attitudes of dentists working in the city center of Afyonkarahisar regarding TCM. Material and Methods: A 55-question survey consisting of 4 sections was designed to assess the participants' knowledge and attitudes regarding TCM. The survey was applied face-to-face to 121 dentists working in the public and private sectors in the city center of Afyonkarahisar. Results: In this study, 81% of dentists stated that they did not have sufficient knowledge about TCM applications and 95.9% did not have a certificate regarding TCM. In this study, the methods that dentists heard, knew, used and recommended the most were phytotherapy, acupuncture, hypnosis, prayer, balnotherapy, cupping, yoga, meditation and music therapy. In addition, the average score of dentists on the Integrative, Complementary and Alternative Medicine Attitude Scale was 32.04±6.27. It was observed that dentists would prefer TCM methods mostly because they have fewer side effects and can be used mostly for relaxation, stress and anxiety reduction. Conclusion: Although the study results show that dentists' knowledge levels and education/certification rates regarding TCM are low, they reveal that their attitudes toward TCM methods are positive. TCM methods should be added to the dentistry education curriculum and dentists should be encouraged to attend TCM courses.