Hina Mahmood, Faizana Wasiq Khan, Manal Raouf.
Correlation of Education Level with Severity of Gingivitis and Plaque Score.
J Pak Dent Assoc Jan ;31(1):38-42.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to find the correlation of educational level with severity of gingivitis and plaque score of patients reporting to the OPD of periodontology department. METHODOLOGY: Cross sectional study was conducted at Islamabad Dental Hospital from May 2018 to May 2019. A total of 376 patients diagnosed with gingivitis were selected using convenience sampling technique. For correlation, participants were equally divided into four educational groups categorized as illiterate, primary, secondary and tertiary. Informed consent was taken from the participants and information regarding socio demographic data and education level was recorded. Oral examinations included visible plaque index (VPI) by Ainamo & Bay and for severity of gingivitis, modified gingival index (MGI) by Lobene and Weatherford was used. Severity of gingivitis was categorized into mild, moderate and severe. Visible plaque score was calculated as percentage on the basis of presence or absence of plaque which was divided into two categories having plaque score < 30 and plaque score > 30. Correlation was calculated by Spearman`s correlation test with statistical significance < 0.01 at 95% confidence interval. RESULTS: Results revealed that moderate gingivitis was most prevalent among all four education groups. Highest percentage of severe gingivitis was observed for illiterate subjects 42(50%) whereas highest percentage of mild gingivitis was observed for subjects with tertiary education 23(65.7%). For subjects with primary and secondary education moderate gingivitis was most prevalent with 72(28%). Correlation of education with severity of gingivitis and plaque score was statistically significant (p-value < 0.01) when spearman`s correlation test was applied indicating that as the education level increased severity of gingivitis and plaque score decreased. CONCLUSION: Hence it was concluded that low educational status is moderately correlated with poor oral hygiene and high prevalence of moderate to severe gingivitis making it necessary for the community service programs to inculcate oral health care workshops in early years of school and to the communities where higher education is far reached.

PakMediNet -Pakistan's largest Database of Pakistani Medical Journals - http://www.pakmedinet.com