Oral health status and its practices among head and neck and oral cancer patients in Rajasthan state: An infirmary based cross-sectional study

Abstract

Introduction: Oral cancer accounts for 7% of all new cancer cases worldwide, around 270,000 cases annually. It is sometimes stated anecdotally that patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) and oral cancer have poor oral hygiene at the time of oncology diagnosis; however, there is little data in the literature to confirm or refute this claim. This study explores the relation between oral hygiene practices and oral hygiene status in relation to the site of cancer. Materials and Methods: The present cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted at the Oncology and Radiology Department of SMS Medical College and Hospital, Jaipur, during the months of July–September 2014. Results: A total of 242 cases were examined, among whom HNC and oral cancer constitute 87 (35.95%) and 155 (64.05%) cases respectively. 45.9% of the patients perform the oral hygiene practice using toothbrush, whereas 46.2% of the patients use either datun/neem or finger as the medium for performing oral hygiene practices. The majority of the patients (66.94%) had poor oral hygiene status. Maximum patients with poor oral hygiene status fall in the 60–69 years of age group (21.9%). Conclusion: Prevention is the best possible way to fight cancer by early examination and diagnosis so that risk factors can be eliminated. The results indicate the existence of a correlation between poor oral hygiene and related practices among HNC and oral cancer patients. Therefore, focus should be on to have more health programs and initiatives that promote periodic oral examination.