Abstract

Background: Dental amalgam remains in clinical use as a restorative material despite ongoing concerns about its mercury content. Undergraduate dental students represent a vulnerable occupational group; however, their awareness of mercury-related health hazards and safe handling practices in the Delhi-NCR context remains insufficiently characterised.

Objective: To evaluate awareness of mercury-related health hazards and the mercury hygiene practices adopted by undergraduate dental students in Delhi-NCR during clinical procedures involving amalgam.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 300 undergraduate dental students (second to fourth year BDS and interns) at institutions in the Delhi-NCR region. Data were collected via a 25-item structured online questionnaire. Chi-square tests of independence were applied at the 5% significance level to examine associations between academic year and awareness or practice outcomes.

Results: Overall awareness of mercury in dental materials was 97.0%, yet only 52% of participants demonstrated adequate mercury hygiene knowledge. Statistically significant inter-group differences were observed for curriculum exposure (p = 0.031), identification of mercury vapour as the most hazardous form (p = 0.031), knowledge of the safe biological threshold (p < 0.001), awareness of mercury release during condensation (p = 0.040), current clinical use (p = 0.040), and knowledge of mercury accumulation sites (p = 0.019).

Conclusions: Significant knowledge deficiencies exist across all academic levels. Standardised, competency-based mercury hygiene training must be integrated into undergraduate dental curricula to protect practitioners, patients, and the environment.