Association between Smoking and Dental Caries among People of Kolhapur District, Maharashtra, India

INTRODUCTION:Smoking as a public health problem, harms one's general and oral well-being leading to increased morbidity and mortality. AIM:To find out the association between dental caries and smokers (current and past) with non-smokers among people of Kolhapur District, Maharashtra, India. MATERIALS AND METHODS:The present cross-sectional study was conducted among 1366 (449 smokers, 440 past smokers and 447 non-smokers), and the patientsweredivided among three age groups (35-44, 45-60 and >60 years). Data was recorded using a pre-tested, pre-validated questionnaire recording the demographic details and modified DMFT index. The data was analyzed using t-test, calculation of Odd's Ratio (OR) and logistic regression was applied to find out association, if any using a licensed SPSS version 22.0. RESULTS:It wasrevealed that the highest mean DMFT was seen among smokers (3.66±5.78) followed by past smokers(3.01±2.66) and non-smokers (3.01±2.66). Also, the maximum DMFT was seen among 35-44 years (3.82±2.4), which was found out to be significant as compared to past-smokers and non-smokers. Odd's ratio analysis revealed that as compared to non-smokers, current smokers and past smokers were 1.6 and 1.1 respectively. The multiple regression analysis revealedthat significant difference wasseen between smoking(.01) and age (0.02) with respect to DMFT.CONCLUSION:Efforts are required by clinicians to educatepeople about the ill-effectsof tobacco and provide tobacco cessation counselling to reduce the burden of morbidity and mortality caused by tobacco.KEYWORDS:Tobacco, Caries, DMFT