O envelhecimento na perspectiva de estudantes de Odontologia: uma análise baseada no "Fact on Aging Quiz”

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge about aging in dentistry students of the Federal University of Santa Maria. Were evaluated 298 students from a total of 347 enrolled in UFSM Dentistry course corresponding to a response rate of 85.87%. Data collection was performed between October 1 and October 18, 2016. A questionnaire composed by two parts was applied: I) "Facts on Aging Quiz", consisting of 23 questions with true (T) or false (F) answers; II) six questions about the participant's personal experience with the aging topic. The results showed that the sample majority is female, representing 69.8% of the studied population. In general, the prevalence of 70% or more of correct answers was low: for the 1st year it was 31.9%, for the 2nd year 24.5%, for the 3rd year 28.5%, for the 4th year 22.7% and for the 5th year 35.2%. The physical domain presented the highest hit rate: 43.2% of women and 63.3% of men answered correctly 70% items or more. It is concluded that dentistry undergraduate students have a low aging knowledge and there seems to be an association between this knowledge and informal aspects of personal experience with elderly.