Factors Related to Oral Mucosal Lesions Among Tobacco Smokers in A Fisher Community of Indonesia

Abstract

Background: Oral mucosal lesions (OMLs) are precursors of oral cancer which affect the quality of life, such as difficulty swallowing, pain, and mastication. These lesions were found related to tobacco consumption. In Indonesia, almost half of the fishers were active tobacco smokers Objectives: This study aims to find the prevalence and factors related to oral mucosal lesions among fishers in Jember, Indonesia. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, oral examination for mucosal lesions and interviews were conducted among 301 fishers. Kruskall Wallis test was run to seek the association of respondent’s demographic, character-smoking habits, and prevalence of oral mucosal lesions. Chi-squre test was conducted for every lesion to find the correlation between demographic characteristics and smoking habits. Result: One or more mucosal lesions were found in 97,7% of the population. Melanosis was observed the most frequently (88.4%), followed by frictional keratosis (33.9%), candidiasis (32.6%), black hairy tongue (6%), nicotine stomatitis (5.3%), leukoplakia (2%). This study found that a majority of fishers use filter cigarettes (73.1%), and they use > 20 cigarettes per day (70.1%). The number of oral mucosal lesions was higher among the older age group, lower education status, and more frequent smokers. Conclusion: The prevalence of oral mucosal lesions among smokers in the fishers community was high and related to sociodemographic factors and a smoking habit.