Oral health status and treatment needs of psychiatric patients in a psychiatric care center, Jammu

Abstract

Objective: Health is a very important asset of all individuals, worldwide. The prevalence of mental disease is increasing in an alarming rate, which is estimated to be 6–7 million people torment with severe mental disorders and is about ten times more with mild mental disorders. This study is conducted to assess the oral health status and estimate the dental treatment needs of hospitalized psychiatric patients. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted for a period of 2 months at a psychiatric hospital. In the study, 275 patients were examined by the investigator. The Chi-square test was applied to discrete data and one-way ANOVA for continuous data. Multivariate analyses were carried out to test the association of age, frequency of cleaning teeth, and materials used for cleaning teeth. Results: The results revealed high caries prevalence, poor oral hygiene and periodontal health, and extensive unmet dental treatment needs. Conclusion: Psychiatric patients are the special groups in the community who require special care and social support from not only from the family but also from the society. Dentists are required to understand the psychiatric illness and oral health implications and carry out preventive measures to prevent oral diseases, for which the psychiatric patients are at high risk to occur.