Assessment of periodontal health status among Koraga tribes residing in Mangalore taluk: a cross sectional study

Background: To assess the periodontal health status among Koraga tribal community residing in Mangalore Taluk.Methods: The study subjects comprised of 400 Koraga tribal’s in the age range of 20-55 years living in Mangalore Taluk. The data regarding oral hygiene practices prevalent in the tribal population was collected by interviewing. Intra oral examination was carried out by using mouth mirror and CPI probe and included simplified oral hygiene index (OHI-S), community periodontal index (CPI), loss of attachment and dental aesthetic index (DAI).Results: Of the total population examined, 81% brushed once daily with 34% of the subjects using tooth paste and brush as oral hygiene aid while, the rest of them used a combination, with other indigenous methods. Majority of them used tobacco in the smokeless form (36%). The oral hygiene status was poor in 56% of the subjects. The present study showed that majority of the Koragas suffered from various gingival and periodontal diseases as assessed by community periodontal index. The dental aesthetic index indicated that 37.5 % of study subjects had very severe malocclusion.Conclusions: This group of people has a poor oral hygiene and periodontal status because they are deprived of the awareness and availability of treatment facilities. Their inappropriate oral hygiene practices, inadequate dental health resources and low socio-economic status are the major factors in this population to cause increased prevalence of periodontal disease