Gingival Health and Oral Hygiene Practices of Schoolchildren in Chennai City

Background: Gingivitis is reversible with both professional and at home care which includes efficient plaque removal. Plaque removal not only reverses the inflammation, but also prevents the periodontal progression and dental caries. If gingivitis and periodontitis are diagnosed early and addressed at that stage, it minimizes the chance of tooth loss. Aim and objectives: The purpose of current study, therefore, was to assess the gingival health status in school children from Chennai city Methodology: Information on the oral hygiene practices of 2,377 students studying in different schools of Chennai was collected using a questionnaire. The Community Periodontal Index of Treatment Needs (CPITN) was used \for diagnosing gingivitis. Chi-square test was used to analyze the differences among the variables in study. Result: In primary dentition group prevalence of gingivitis was negligible (1.1%). In mixed dentition group, 33% had gingivitis while prevalence in permanent dentition group was 81.7%. In permanent dentition group, more than 95.4% children used tooth brush and Tooth paste for brushing their teeth and 85% children used horizontal method of brushing followed almost equally by circular and vertical methods. Conclusion: This study reports a high prevalence of bleeding, especially among older children in permanent dentition group