Attitudes and perceptions of dental students towards artificial intelligence.

backgroundArtificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming healthcare, including dentistry, through its applications in diagnosis, prosthetic planning, and oral disease detection. As future professionals, dental students play a vital role in integrating AI into clinical practice. However, little is known about their attitudes toward AI, particularly in low-resource settings such as Palestine.

methodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted among 305 dental students from four Palestinian universities using a validated 22-item questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests (p < 0.05).

resultsAmong the 305 participants (232 females, 73 males), 77% reported basic knowledge of AI, with social media being the most common source (66.2%). Female students were significantly more likely than males to believe that AI will bring major advancements to dentistry (p = 0.04), and that it can be used for diagnostic (p = 0.030), prognostic (p = 0.045), and treatment planning purposes (p = 0.015), as well as in postgraduate training (p = 0.017). Those with prior AI knowledge or awareness of its dental applications showed greater enthusiasm for its diagnostic use (p = 0.004) and integration into dental education (p = 0.004 and p = 0.009, respectively).

conclusionPalestinian dental students demonstrate strong awareness and positive attitudes toward the use of AI in dentistry. Gender-based differences and ethical concerns emphasize the need for structured, inclusive, and responsible AI training within dental curricula.