Dental care utilization among dental students

The purpose of this study was to determine the proportion of needed dental care actually received by dental students during their dental education. This was accomplished by a review of dental records for recent Baylor College of Dentistry graduates. Collected data included restorative, periodontal, endodontic and extraction procedures planned and dental care actually accomplished prior to graduation. Comparisons of these findings were made based on gender, ethnicity and academic standing of the sample subjects. The sample size of 134 included 98 males and 36 females; 111 were Caucasian and 23 Minorities. Fifty-six individuals were in the upper academic third of their class, 37 in the middle third and 41 in the lower third. The treatments required were primarily operative dental restorations (7.28 +/- 7.19 surfaces per student), crowns (0.43 +/- 1.22 units per student) and extractions (0.90 +/- 1.58 per student). Periodontal and endodontic needs were minimal. Students received approximately 60% of the required care during their dental education. Minimal relationships were identified between gender, academic standing and ethnicity and the students' care needs and treatments. The results suggest a relatively low priority for receiving needed dental care among dental students.