STATUS OF EDENTULOUS RIDGE AND ITS ASSOCIATION WITH DIET AMONG ADULT RURAL POPULATION OF MANGALORE TALUK

Teeth provide the ability to chew a wide variety of foods of different textures and nutritional values. The aged grouped form with all their teeth extracted is a problem tends to worsen when no healthcare measures are taken. Healthcare measurements aimed at offering dental care to the entire population. This study evaluate the status of edentulous ridge and its association with, age, gender, dietary and nutritional factors education, and quality of life. Material and methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted on 299 subjects among the rural population of Mangalore Taluk.The study involved completion of a predesigned proforma.Statistical analysis of the data was done using the SPSS version 17.0. Chi square test was used for data analysis and the level of significance was p value < 0.05 Results:In the study, the sample was composed of 165 males and 135 females, with 152 of them being vegetarians and 147 with mixed diet. Type 3 and type 4 ridge was found predominantly among the mixed diet and among those with Secondary level of education.Type 4 ridge was found predominantly in both the arches among those, who lived aloneand predominantly among females in the mandibular edentulous arch. Conclusion: The study shows that the type of ridge is affected by demographic factors, diet and quality of life. It proves conclusively that there exists a significant decrease in the quality of ridge in illiterates, which necessitates creating awareness on the importance of the nutrition and the effect on oral health.