Effect of Opioids on Oral Health Status among Institutionalised Drug Addicts in a District of Rajasthan, India

• Published in: Journal of clinical and diagnostic research Vol. 12; no. 4; pp. LC01 - LC04
• Main Authors: Gijwani, Deeksha, Singh, Simarpreet, Mathur, Anmol, Aggarwal, Vikram Pal, Sharma, Aditi, Goyal, Nikita, Setia, Salvi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: JCDR Research and Publications Private Limited 01-04-2018
• Subjects: drug addiction; opium; oral hygiene
• ISSN: 2249-782X; 0973-709X
• DOI: 10.7860/JCDR/2018/31511.11361

Introduction: According to the World Health Organisation survey, 2004, opioid is one of the most common forms of drug used by drug abusers in India. The total number of registered opium abusers in India is estimated to be 1.4 million. The state in India with the maximum consumption of opium is seen in Punjab and Rajasthan when compared to the other states. Aim: To assess the oral health status and related practices of opium drug users in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan, India. Materials and Methods: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 577 institutionalised adult male, drug addicts from across Rajasthan and Punjab. Comparison was made with duration of addiction to investigate any differences in oral health status. A standardised, pre-validated questionnaire was used to collect data on tooth brushing and its frequency, duration of drug abuse and oral complication like dry mouth, burning mouth, taste impairment and eating difficulty along with clinical examination to record Oral Hygiene Index-Simplified (OHI-S), Community Periodontal Index (CPI), and Decayed Missing Filled Surface (DMFS) index. The statistical significant analysis was done by t-test, Chi-square and level of significance was set at p<0.05. Multiple linear regression model was used to find out the association between duration of addiction and CPI, OHI-S and DMFS score. Results: The mean age of the patients was 38.2±11.89 years. Maximum addiction was seen in the age group of 18-24 years (n=158, 27.4%). Significantly higher mean scores of OHI-S, CPI, Decayed Missing Filled Teeth (DMFT) and DMFS score were reported among the patient on drug abuse of opioids for more than five years. Around half of the patients reported brushing their teeth at least once. Multiple linear regression model showed very high DMFS score which were associated with longer duration of drug addiction and no tooth brushing. Conclusion: The present study demonstrates poor oral health behaviour, worse periodontal health and higher caries experience among opium abusers, it is important to develop a specialised awareness protocol towards oral healthcare for the societies where such drug dependency is widespread.