Self Rating of Satisfaction with Dental Appearance of a Group of Nigerian Doctors and Nurses

Introduction: A pleasant dental appearance translates to a pleasant smile. The need for aesthetic dental changes is very often self-perceived and can have a large effect on individuals’ self-confidence and their overall quality of life. There is paucity of such data among healthcare professionals particularly doctors and nurses thus the aim of this study is to assess the self-satisfaction of doctors and nurses with their dental aesthetics.

Materials and Methods: This was a self-administered questionnaire-based descriptive cross-sectional study carried out among medical doctors and nurses in University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

Results: A total of seventy-nine doctors and nurses participated in this study. Majority of the nurses were females (39,83.0%) whilst majority of doctors were males (21. 65.6%). More than half of the participants were single (45,57.0%). About half of the participants (44,55.7%) believed that their teeth were healthy and well-arranged. and were satisfied with the appearance of their teeth (47,59.5%).

Conclusion: Female participants expressed greater dissatisfaction with their dental aesthetics. Those aged 31–40-years were the most satisfied with their dental aesthetics.