Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of needle stick injuries (NSIs) among medical students at Taif University in Saudi Arabia and assess their knowledge of NSI.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between 4 September 2024 and 12 October 2024 among medical students at Taif University in Saudi Arabia, using a self-administered online questionnaire designed after conducting a pilot study.
Results: A total of 278 medical students were enrolled in the study; the majority were males (59.4%), in their sixth academic year (24.5%), and specialized in medicine and surgery fields (55.8%). The results showed that half (50.4%) of the participating medical students had good knowledge about NSI, and the minority (11.9%) had an NSI incident. Additionally, gender and academic year were significantly associated with higher knowledge levels.
Conclusion: The study showed that half of the participating medical students at Taif University had good knowledge and a low incidence rate of NSI. However, more than half did not report their incidence. Otherwise, female gender and older academic years contributed to higher knowledge levels.

Key words: Needle stick injuries, prevalence, medical students, cross-sectional study, Saudi Arabia