Validity of the periodontal disease surveillance self-report questionnaire in a Nigerian population

Abstract

Background: Chronic periodontal disease is important in the aetiology of various life-threatening systemic diseases. Its surveillance using self-report questionnaire has become necessary due to the disadvantages associated with its surveillance using clinical examination methods. Aim: The aim is to determine the validity of periodontal disease surveillance self-report questionnaire in a Nigerian population. Methods: A representative sample of 250 consecutive adults, attending the dental clinic, University College Hospital, Ibadan, were interviewed and clinically examined using a periodontal disease self-report questionnaire, and community periodontal index of treatment need (CPITN), index as a gold standard. Tooth mobility and gingival recession were also assessed. The data were analysed using SPSS version 15 and OpenEpi module for performance evaluation of a diagnostic test. Validity was determined using receiver operating characteristic curve, the sum of sensitivity and specificity as well as the sum of positive and negative predictive values. Results: The mean age of the study participants was 40.9 ± 16.3 years where the males accounted for 48.9%. It demonstrated low sensitivity, high specificity and low diagnostic accuracy with receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.6. The sum of sensitivity and specificity as well as the sum of positive and negative predictive values were below 120. Only 21.7% reported they had the periodontal disease as compared to 87% diagnosed cases using the clinically based examination method (CPITN index). Conclusion: The periodontal disease self-report questionnaire demonstrated low validity in the study group as many people who had periodontal disease were missed. Development of a questionnaire tool adapted specifically for this environment is hereby recommended.