A study of oral hygiene status and prevalence of gingival diseases in 9 and 12-year-old school children of a northern hilly state, India

Abstract

Background: The gingival and overall oral health status is affected by the changes in lifestyle, dietary habits, and aberrant oral hygiene practices. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of gingival diseases among school children of Himachal Pradesh. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among a sample of 1188 school children in the age group of 9 and 12 years from randomly selected schools of rural and urban areas of Himachal Pradesh and they were included as study subjects. The survey was carried out according to the WHO Oral Health Assessment Form (modified). Community periodontal index was used to assess gingival health, using three indicators: Healthy, gingival bleeding, and calculus. Plaque index was used to assess oral hygiene as poor, fair, and good. Statistical Analysis: SPSS version 15. Results: A total of 1188 children were examined, of these 650 (54.8%) were males and 538 (45.2%) were females. A total of 564 belonged to the 9 and 624 to 12 years age group. The overall prevalence of gingival disease was 22.9%. The majority (14.2%) were presented with calculus and 8.7% showed gingival bleeding ( P < 0.0000001). The most affected 24.3% with gingivitis were females in comparison to 21.7% males that is not statistically significant, P < 0.5. Age wise prevalence showed a linear increase; 12-year-old children were affected more 34.8% as compared to 9.8% in 9-year-old children. Conclusion: There is a need for reinforcement of dental services to difficult and hard areas.