Effect of westernization on oral health among college students of Udaipur City, India.

BACKGROUND: There is overwhelming evidence that periodontal disease and dental caries affect the majority of populations and that western culture and lifestyle may have a profound influence on oral health, especially in adults. The present study was performed to determine the effect of westernization on the oral health of college students of Udaipur City, Rajasthan. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among students attending various professional and non-professional bachelor's degree colleges of Udaipur City, Rajasthan, India, from March 2013 to May 2013. Eight hundred students were selected based on a two-stage random sampling procedure. Westernization was assessed by a self-administered structured questionnaire. Periodontal status, dental caries status and malocclusion were assessed according to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria (1997). Statistical analysis was performed using chi-square and Multivariate logistic regression. The confidence level and level of significance were set at 95 and 5 %, respectively. RESULTS: The present study suggested that adverse habits, listening to English music and preferring English food had a significant association with dental caries and periodontal diseases. Malocclusion also showed a significant relationship with consuming English food for snacks and desserts. Multivariate analysis revealed a significantly greater odds ratio (OR) for periodontal disease and dental caries among those who preferred English food for lunch. CONCLUSION: Based on the results of the present study, there is an association between westernization and oral health.

Reliability of third molar development for age estimation in Gujarati population: A comparative study.

BACKGROUND: Age assessment may be a crucial step in postmortem profiling leading to confirmative identification. In children, Demirjian's method based on eight developmental stages was developed to determine maturity scores as a function of age and polynomial functions to determine age as a function of score. AIM: Of this study was to evaluate the reliability of age estimation using Demirjian's eight teeth method following the French maturity scores and Indian-specific formula from developmental stages of third molar with the help of orthopantomograms using the Demirjian method. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Dental panoramic tomograms from 30 subjects each of known chronological age and sex were collected and were evaluated according to Demirjian's criteria. Age calculations were performed using Demirjian's formula and Indian formula. Statistical analysis used was Chi-square test and ANOVA test and the P values obtained were statistically significant. RESULTS: There was an average underestimation of age with both Indian and Demirjian's formulas. The mean absolute error was lower using Indian formula hence it can be applied for age estimation in present Gujarati population. Also, females were ahead of achieving dental maturity than males thus completion of dental development is attained earlier in females. CONCLUSION: Greater accuracy can be obtained if population-specific formulas considering the ethnic and environmental variation are derived performing the regression analysis.