Awareness and intended behavioral responses to oral potentially malignant disorders: an image-based assessment among dental clinic attendees in Jordan

Oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMDs) are a group of oral diseases that have the potential for malignant transformation. A significant proportion of oral squamous cell carcinomas arise from OPMDs. Thus, their early detection contributes to the prevention of oral cancer. An investigation of the public’s awareness and intended behavioral responses to OPMDs helps identify health-seeking patterns, underscoring risk factors that are associated with poor awareness of OPMDs management. This study aims to investigate overall awareness of OPMDs among the public, and to understand the public’s behaviors as a response to different clinical subtypes of OPMDs. A total of 528 patients attending a two-center dental institution in northern Jordan agreed to participate in this study. A researcher-administered questionnaire was employed to capture the responses of the participants to selected clinical images of OPMDs. Fifteen clinical image-based scenarios of OPMDs representing three lesion types—white, red, and erosive—in five oral locations—buccal, tongue, floor of the mouth, palate, and lips—were employed. Age and sex influenced overall OPMDs awareness (p < 0.001 and p = 0.006, respectively). Three behavioral phenotypes were identified among the study participants as follows: active/high awareness, moderately active/self-managing, and passive/low awareness. Lesion characteristics, including color and location, significantly influenced the response behaviors of participants. The findings of this study reveal moderate public awareness of OPMDs, with variations according to age group and sex. Distinct behavioral patterns were identified, influenced by the clinical characteristics of OPMDs. The findings of this study indicate a previously unrecognized and latent awareness level of OPMDs clinical variants that necessitates educational interventions to increase OPMDs awareness.