Prevalence of odontogenic infections and their risk factors among the general population of Hyderabad, Pakistan.

Abstract

Objectives: Oral health performs a central part in general health which is associated with good oral hygiene. Teeth and their supporting (periodontal) structures are considered most important to oral health. Therefore, Most prevalent oral diseases such as odontogenic infections (dental caries, gingivitis, periodontal disease) gum disease, oral mucosal and congenital dental problems are foremost oral health dilemma in general population. Objective: The main objective of current study was to find out the Prevalence of odontogenic infections and their risk factors among the general population. Study Design: This is a descriptive cross sectional study. Setting: Dental patients who came to different dental clinical settings of Hyderabad, Pakistan. Period: August to December 2018. Material and Methods: A total of 300 patient’s data were collected. In current study, the variables of interest are microbial odontogenic infections such as dental caries, gingivitis and periodontal disease were included in study. Following risk factors were explored: gender, age, residence, education level, disease duration, smoking, family history, and tooth paste habit. All information/data were personally collected by interview technique and oral cavity examination. The observational data were reported in the specific form and used descriptive statistics to find out the results. Results: A total of 300 dental patients having various infections such as gingivitis (47%), dental caries (20.7%) and periodontal infection (32.3%) were reported in this study. Of these, 162(54%) were females and 138(46%) of males. The most common age of patients i.e. 41.7% were from 41 to 60 years. Education status showed that 86% of the dental patients had education and 35.3% had family history of dental diseases. Factors such as mostly duration of diseases were > 6 months(33.7%) and almost 66% patients has habit of cleaning the teeths, However, Calculus and tarta deposited in 62.7% patients teeth. Smoking (21.3%) and 46.6% patients used sweet foods on daily purpose. Moreover, amoxicillin most frequently prescribed antimicrobial agent 39% followed by metronidazole 32.7%. Conclusion: Dental diseases are common public health problem among our society, poor oral hygiene & dietary habits and deposition of calculus are associated factors for odontogenic infections. Moreover, prescribing pattern shows that Amoxicillin and Metronidazole has been considered as first-line treatment for oral infections. Therefore, oral hygiene education, dietary and proper cleaning of teeth habits and dental visit at early stage of disease should be recommended for patients to avoid and cure dental odontogenic infections.