Abstract

Background: Dental records serve as a primary identifier in Disaster Victim Identification (DVI), yet structured undergraduate training in forensic odontology remains limited in India. Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of a structured training module in improving dental charting and radiographic comparison skills among Indian undergraduate dental students. Materials and Methods: Sixty final-year dental students participated in a prospective interventional study involving pre-training assessment, structured didactic and simulation-based training, and post-training evaluation. Accuracy of dental charting and radiographic comparison, completion time, inter-observer agreement (Cohen’s kappa), and self-reported confidence were measured. Paired t-tests were applied for statistical analysis (p < 0.05). Results: Charting accuracy improved from 62.4% to 84.7%, and radiographic comparison accuracy increased from 58.3% to 81.9% (p < 0.001). Inter-observer agreement improved from moderate to substantial levels. Confidence scores increased significantly. Conclusion: Simulation-based DVI training significantly enhances technical competency and reliability among undergraduate dental students, supporting integration into dental curricula.

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