UK dental professionals' knowledge, experience and confidence when treating patients on the autism spectrum.

Background Over 1% of the UK population have a diagnosis of autism, and yet there is minimal information regarding the experiences of dental professionals working with people on the autistic spectrum. The current study is the first to investigate UK dental professionals' knowledge of autism, their perceived confidence when treating autistic patients, and the factors that affect this.Methods An online, self-report survey was completed by 482 UK dental professionals and included questions on participants' training, prior experiences and knowledge of autism, and confidence when treating autistic patients.