Confidence Levels From Dental Student-To-Student Injections: A Comparative Study

Area of Science:

• Dental Education
• Anesthesiology

Background:

• Dental schools commonly use student-to-student (STS) injections for preclinical local anesthesia training.
• This study evaluates the confidence levels of first-year (D1) and second-year (D2) dental students in local anesthetic injections.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the confidence of D1 students using manikin-based training versus D2 students performing STS injections.
• To assess the long-term impact of these training methods on injection confidence.

Main Methods:

• Cohort surveys were administered to D2 students (n=35) 12 months post-course and D1 students (n=43) immediately and 15 months post-course.
• Surveys assessed confidence in Posterior Superior Alveolar (PSA), Greater Palatine (GP), Inferior Alveolar (IA), and Long Buccal (LB) nerve blocks, alongside demographic data.

Main Results:

• D1 students showed significantly higher immediate post-course confidence than D2 students for PSA and GP blocks (p<0.001).
• D1 students' confidence decreased significantly 15 months post-course compared to immediately after for PSA and GP blocks (p<0.001).
• No significant confidence difference was found between D2 students (12 months experience) and D1 students (15 months experience) for PSA, GP, and IA blocks. Males reported higher confidence than females.

Conclusions:

• STS injections enhance preclinical dental students' confidence before initial patient injections.
• The confidence advantage of STS injections over manikin training is not significant after 15 months of clinical experience.