LACK OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT ORGAN DONATION AND TRANSPLANTATION AMONG DENTAL STUDENTS

To assess the level of knowledge of Brazilian dental students about organ donation and transplantation. The 477 undergraduate Brazilian dental students, in the first or in the last year of the course, were questioned from March 2011 to June 2012. Data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics and differences between groups were analyzed by the chi-squared test. Only 84 (18%) reported having already attended to some class about the topic organ transplantation. Students reported knowing the brain death definition, but they did not know how the diagnosis of brain death is made (P =0.148). Students in the first and fifth years did not know about the maintenance care of potential organ donors (P=0.148) and how to approach the family about donation in case of brain death (P=0.561). Our study has demonstrated a lack of knowledge about organ donation and transplantation among undergraduate students in the four dental schools investigated. Nationwide, curriculum implementation is suggested in order to prepare dental care professions to integrate a transplantation team. Further investigation is necessary in order to evaluate dental student knowledge in other Brazilian regions.