Abstract

Background: Forensic dentistry is a subspecialty of forensic science

that handles, examines, and presents evidence from teeth in the most
ethical manner possible. In addition to doing research, forensic
odontology (FO) entails managing, examining, assessing, and
presenting evidence from dentistry in civil or criminal investigations.
In these circumstances, the forensic odontologist aids the court
system by reviewing the dental findings.

Aim: The present investigation was carried out to assess the dental
faculty member's awareness, interest, and knowledge of FO at dental
educational institutions in Jharkhand, India.

Methods and materials: The sample size calculation assumes a simple

random sampling technique and a large population size using the
formula E=sqrt((Z^2*p*(1-p))/n). A total of 102 dental
teaching faculty members from diverse dental specialties participated
in the survey. Utilizing a validated questionnaire that was sent directly
after receiving approval from the institutional ethics committee in
January 2023, data were gathered in a tailored manner. The
questionnaire included 12 questions to gauge the dental
teaching faculty members' awareness, knowledge, and interest in FO.
Closed-ended questions were included. The outcomes were computed
using a percentage system.

Results: In this study, 95% of study participants agreed with the fact
that teeth are a possible source of DNA, while 5% were unaware of
this fact. 68% of study participants said that visual examination
constitutes the initial stage in the identification process for
unidentified bodies while 8% of study participants said that DNA
fingerprinting constitutes the initial stage in the identification process
for unidentified bodies. However, 8% of study participants didn’t
know anything about this aspect. 72% of dental teaching faculty
members agreed to the fact that Barr bodies should be used to
determine sex. 89% of study participants responded positively to the
question "Can teeth or enamel serve as a tool for determining age?"
11% of study participants did not know that teeth or enamel can serve
as a tool for determining age. 41% of study participants had the
correct information that FO instruction for bachelor of dental surgery
(BDS) students takes place and, as per Dental Council of India (DCI)
standards, should be given in both BDS second and third years.

Conclusion: The results of the current survey provided information on

FO practices among Jharkhand dental institutes' dental faculty. The
poll revealed that they have the necessary information, which they
must have learned either while studying, participating in continuing
dental education, or teaching.

Keywords: dental teaching staff, forensic odontology, interest,

awareness, knowledge
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Introduction

Recognition of the person who was assaulted or the method of the

offense is a process of brainstorming in the current situation when
instances of crime are at their highest. Through the specialty of
forensic odontology (FO), the dentist plays a small but crucial role in
criminal investigations. In accordance with Keiser-Nielson, forensic
dentistry is a subspecialty of forensic science that handles, examines,
and presents evidence from teeth in the most ethical manner possible
[1]. In addition to doing research, FO entails managing, examining,
assessing, and presenting evidence from dentistry in civil or criminal
investigations. In these circumstances, the forensic odontologist aids
the court system by reviewing the dental findings [2].

Even though forensic dentistry has made great strides in terms of

technical development on an international level, India continues to lag
far behind other countries in this area. The necessity for dental
professionals to be well-versed in FO is growing, as it is important for
identifying people and spotting abuse in people at every stage of life.
Dental professionals are medical specialists who regularly examine
patients' head and neck regions while having a great possibility of
spotting neglect and assault symptoms [3,4]. Every dentist needs to be
aware of the forensic consequences of their work. In India, dental
professionals are less frequently engaged in forensic situations due to
a lack of proper awareness, expertise, and exposure, among
others [5,6].

Although numerous studies have been done on the awareness,

interest, and knowledge of general dental practitioners who are
affiliated with dental educational institutions and are regularly
exposed to academia, the most recent news, documents, and so on,
their understanding is regularly updated; however, it is questionable
as to how much interest they have in forensics [7,8]. So, the current
investigation was conducted to evaluate the awareness, interest, and
knowledge of FO among dental faculty members at dental educational
institutions in Jharkhand, India.
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Materials and methods

Different dental colleges in Jharkhand, India, undertook the current

cross-sectional survey. Ethical clearance was obtained from Hazaribag
College of Dental Sciences and Hospital with the institutional
reference number HCDSHIEC/2022/32.

The sample size calculation formula is as follows: E=sqrt((Z^2*p*(1-

p))/n), where, Z=Z-value for the desired confidence level, p=estimated
proportion or expected prevalence, and E=margin of error.
Substituting the values: E=sqrt((1.96^2*0.5*(1-0.5))/00) E=0.098

So, with a desired sample size of 100 patients, and assuming a 95%
confidence level, the margin of error would be approximately 9.8%.
This sample size calculation assumes a simple random sampling
technique and a large population size.

A total of 102 dental teaching faculty members from diverse dental

specialties participated in the survey. The study included those dental
students who were willing and available to participate and excluded
all faculty, staff, and dental students not willing to participate in the
study. The participant was made to seat in the outpatient room of the
hospital. Utilizing a validated questionnaire that was sent directly
after receiving approval from the institutional ethics committee in
January 2023, data were gathered in a personalized manner. The
questionnaire included 12 questions to gauge the dental teaching
faculty members' awareness, knowledge, and interest in FO as shown
in Table Table11.
The knowledge-related questions aimed to evaluate the participants'
understanding of fundamental concepts and principles of FO. The
awareness-related questions aimed to assess the participants'
familiarity with current practices, advancements, and real-world
applications of FO. The interest-related questions aimed to gauge the
participants' inclination toward incorporating FO into their teaching
practices and professional development.

The Cronbach's alpha value for the questionnaire was 0.8, and the face
value was 1. Closed-ended questions were included. The outcomes
were computed using a percentage system. The collected data were
analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics, Version 22.0 (Armonk, NY, USA).
Data were analyzed using the Chi-square test.
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Results

In this study, 95% of study participants agreed to the fact that teeth
are a possible source of DNA, while 5% were unaware of this fact. 68%
of study participants said that visual examination constitutes the
initial stage in the identification process for unidentified bodies. 8% of
study participants said that DNA fingerprinting constitutes the initial
stage in the identification process for unidentified bodies. However,
24% of study participants didn’t know anything about this aspect.
72% of dental teaching faculty members agreed to the fact that Barr
bodies should be used to determine sex. 13% of study participants
didn’t agree with the fact that Barr bodies should be used to
determine sex. 15% of study participants didn’t know about the fact
that Barr bodies can be used to determine sex. 89% of study
participants responded positively to the question that a tooth or
enamel can serve as a tool for determining age. 11% of study
participants didn’t know that teeth or enamel can serve as a tool for
determining age. 41% of study participants had the correct
information that FO instruction for bachelor of dental surgery (BDS)
students takes place and, as per Dental Council of India (DCI)
standards, should be given in both BDS second and third years. 29% of
study participants replied BDS final year, 16% replied BDS third year,
and 14% replied BDS second year (Table 2).
41% of study participants, when asked "What might you do when you
find evidence of child abuse?" replied they would inform the parents
of the children. 100% of study participants, when asked "What might
you do when you find evidence of child abuse?" replied they would
inform the police while 18% of study participants when asked "What
you might do when you find evidence of child abuse?" replied correctly
that they would inform NGOs. 59% of study participants, when
asked "Are there any forensic odontologists in India you know of?"
replied yes, while 41% of study participants replied no. 56% of study
participants replied yes when asked "Do you have any knowledge of a
criminal proceeding that was resolved with the use of forensic
dentistry?." 44% of study participants replied no when asked this
question. 92% of study participants said that radio, mobile, electronic
sources (e.g., TV), and so on are sources from which they learned
about expertise in forensic dentistry. 8% of study participants said
that seminars, journals, lectures, and others are sources from which
they learned about expertise in forensic dentistry
96% of study participants agreed to the fact that we can, as dentists,
assist forensic experts by keeping records while 4% of study
participants disagreed. 26% of study participants replied yes when
asked "Do you know of any accredited FO educational institutions in
India?." 74% replied no. 94% of study participants replied yes when
asked "Would you choose to go through any such learning if given the
chance?" while 6% of study participants replied

Discussion

In a number of prosperous countries around the world, the practice of

forensic dentistry has grown in importance. But it has not quite taken
off in developing nations like India [9,10]. In the expanding realm of
medicine, dental professionals would need to be more knowledgeable
and cognizant of FO [11,12]. The present investigation was carried out
to assess the dental faculty members at dental educational institutions
in Jharkhand and India's awareness, interest, and knowledge of FO.

One of the most difficult topics in the study of FO is human

identification. The simplest and most basic stage in identifying the
unclaimed person is still a visual inspection. In the current study, 68%
of participants favored it. For personal, societal, and legal reasons, it is
necessary to identify a person [13,14]. As a result, one of the key goals
of FO is person identification. Body identification by buccal smears is
one of the most straightforward methods for determining gender,
despite the fact that dimorphism in dogs is a fairly common method
[15]. The inactive X chromatin known as the Barr body is seen in
females against the nuclear membrane. These are lacking in males
who are believed to have negative chromatin, while they exist in 40%
of females who are thought to have positive chromatin. The pulp of
human teeth in dead bodies can be used to determine a person's sex
for up to four weeks [16]. Despite the fact that numerous studies have
been conducted on the awareness, interest, and knowledge of general
dental practitioners who are associated with dental educational
institutions and regularly exposed to academia, the most recent news,
and documents, among others, their interest in forensics is debatable
[17].

Child abuse is a severe societal issue with global implications that is

spreading alarmingly across all socioeconomic tiers and all racial or
ethnic communities. All instances of child abuse, which are
increasingly prevalent in daily life, should be discovered as soon as
possible. Child abuse and neglect should be disclosed to childcare
officials as soon as they are discovered because they result from a
dearth of communication between the caretaker and the child and
cause nonaccidental injury to the child's physical and developmental
status [18]. According to research, parents may physically assault
their children, and roughly one in ten children encounters this abuse.

The general public's level of awareness is significantly influenced by

the media. The same is true for the current poll, where 92% of
respondents indicated that TV series, radio, the internet, and other
sources were their primary sources of information. Journals and
publications are still among the most reliable and accurate sources of
this information. The current analysis reveals that very few dental
professionals keep up with forensic-related journals or publications
[19].

In the present, when crime rates are at their peak, identifying the
victim or the manner of the assault requires creative problem-solving.
The dentist plays a small but important role in criminal investigations
thanks to the field of FO. A branch of forensic science known as
"forensic dentistry" handles, evaluates, and presents dental evidence
in the most morally upstanding way possible. Most researchers in
anthropology, archaeological researchers, and forensic odontologists
use teeth as a credible method for estimating age-related alterations
to teeth [20].

The study has a few limitations, such as a small sample size and the
fact that only dental faculty members participated in it. For more
accurate results, participants from other fraternities should be
included as well. There are not many FO workshops or conferences
held annually for dental surgeons, which may awaken students'
interest in learning more about the field. The data collected relied on
self-reporting by the participants. This introduces the possibility of
recall bias or participants providing socially desirable responses,
which may not accurately reflect their actual knowledge or practices.
The study participants were selected from a specific group of dental
teaching faculty members, which could introduce bias. It is possible
that those who agreed to participate in the study had a higher interest
or awareness in FO compared to non-participants. The study utilized a
cross-sectional design, which captures data at a single point in time.
This limits the ability to establish causality or assess changes over
time. The study did not account for potential confounding variables
that could influence the results. Factors such as participants' years of
teaching experience, educational background, or exposure to FO
training may have influenced their responses.

Conducting studies with larger sample sizes and including dental

faculty members from different regions and countries would enhance
the generalizability of the findings. The study exhibits both self-
reporting bias and selection bias. These biases can impact the
generalizability and reliability of the study findings. Longitudinal
designs that follow participants over time can provide insights into
changes in awareness, knowledge, and practices of dental teaching
faculty members and identify factors that influence these changes.
Further research with more diverse samples is needed to enhance the
generalizability of the results to a broader population of dental
teaching faculty members.
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Conclusions

The results of the current survey provided information on forensic

odontology practices among Jharkhand dental institutes' dental
faculty. The poll revealed that they have the necessary information,
which they must have learned either while studying, participating in
continuing dental education, or teaching. The survey also analyzed the
associated variables of awareness and interest, which were found to
be lower among dental teaching staff.

If held for dental surgeons on a regular basis, conferences, workshops,

CDEs, and seminars will enhance their knowledge and sensibility.
More dentists will be interested in attending and taking part in such
programs if additional career possibilities in this industry are created.
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Notes