139 medical corps soldiers (aged 28-32 years) of the Swiss army were interviewed for their oral hygiene habits. The same questionnaire as that described by Saxer et al. (1972) was used in order to compare the results of the present study with those obtained by Saxer et al. (1972) in an army basic training school in Zurich. The attitude of the soldiers towards their dentist did not change when compared to that of the recruits. However, the soldiers tended to be more "tooth conscious" than the recruits. They also showed a better attitude for oral hygiene procedures and greater knowledge concerning periodontal disease.