Evaluation of Oral Hygiene in Visually Impaired Individuals of Chennai

Background Oral hygiene is the most common unmet need of visually impaired individuals. Good oral health is imperative for proper mastication, appearance and speech. Dental caries is the most common chronic oral disease of childhood that interferes with normal nutrition intake, and regular activities because its pain adversely affects the normal food eating. Aim The aim of the study is to evaluate the oral hygiene in visually impaired people of chennai. Objective The objective of this study is to evaluate the oral hygiene level in visually impaired people using a questionnaire. Materials and Method A questionnaire consisting of 9 questions was used to evaluate the oral hygiene of the visually impaired individuals. The study population consisted of 50 individuals belonging to the age group of 10 20 years. The questions were dictated to the individuals and their response was marked. They were clearly explained about the purpose of this study and then the research was conducted. Result It was observed that 75 % of the individuals had poor oral hygiene, 15 % of them had a moderate level of hygiene and only 10 % of them had a good oral hygiene.56 % of them brushed their teeth only once a day and 66 % of the individuals rarely rinsed their mouth after every meal. It was also observed that 60 % of them visited the dentist rarely and 30 % of them had never visited the dentist. ConclusionThe present study shows that individuals exhibited suboptimal levels of oral health with majority of them showing high caries prevalence. Thus more care and preventive methods must be administered to disabled individuals in order to improve their oral health status.