Orthodontic Treatment Need and Its Association with the Oral Hygiene Status among Almajiris: A Pilot Study

Abstract

Objective: The oral hygiene status and orthodontic treatment need among Almajiris have not gotten the attention it deserves. Almajiris suffer the same harsh or worse living conditions just like the internally displaced persons and refugees with difficulty accessing the already scarce health care facilities. The objective of this study was to determine the orthodontic treatment need and its association with the oral hygiene status among Almajiris. To further assess the impact of malocclusion severity on their oral hygiene status.

Methods: The study was a cross sectional pilot study conducted among 42 Almajiris. Orthodontic treatment need and the oral hygiene status were evaluated using the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI) and the simplified oral hygiene index (OHI-S) respectively. Effect of malocclusion severity on the OHI-S score was evaluated using linear regression model. The level of association between malocclusion using DAI and their oral hygiene status (OHI-S) was also conducted using Pearson correlation coefficient.  The level of significance was set at <0.05.

Results: Increased overjet (>3mm) had the highest presentation of 85.7% while missing teeth and anterior crossbite had the least presentation of 4% each. Orthodontic treatment was highly desirable and mandatory among 14.3% of Almajiris in each category. Only a 4% variation of the OHI-S was explainable by the level of malocclusion severity, (p=0.207). There was poor correlation (r=0.199, p=0.207) between the DAI and the OHI-S.

Conclusion: This present study shows that a large number of Almajiris have poor oral hygiene and increasing number of them requiring orthodontic treatment. Their level of malocclusion severity does not necessarily influence the oral hygiene status.