The knowledge about periodontal health of northeastern Italian pharmacists: a cross-sectional survey

Abstract Background: The aim of this study is to determine the knowledge of periodontal health and prevention of periodontal diseases of a pool of pharmacists working in Friuli Venezia Giulia. Methods: A 22 questions questionnaire about oral health was sent by mail to all the pharmacies working in Friuli Venezia Giulia and to the most known associations of pharmacists. The data were collected and analysed by Google Forms software. Results: 164 questionnaires were analysed. 91% of the pharmacists assert to give advices about prevention and treatment of oral affection during professional practice but 97% never attended university courses about it. Only 21% took part in post graduate courses about oral health. Most of them have not enough notions about periodontal disease. Conclusions: The findings from this study highlight that pharmacists have not enough knowledge about periodontal disease and its treatment but every day they provide advices about oral health. It would be appropriate a better organization of post-graduate courses about oral health and prevention of periodontal diseases.