Association Between Socioeconomic Status And Oral Health Among Selected South Indian Population

Background: Socioeconomic factor is one of the major predisposing factors in the development of periodontal disease. People from low economic status less frequently visit the dentists for preventive care compared to those of higher status. Aim: The aim of the study was to assess the association between socioeconomic status and periodontal status among a selected South Indian population. Materials and Methods: The present cross-sectional study was carried out among 150 out patients who reported to the Department of Periodontics, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Chennai between December 2020 - February 2021. The patients were categorised based on their socioeconomic status and periodontal status. Based on the periodontal status, patients were categorized into clinically healthy gingiva (50 patients), gingivitis (50 patients), periodontitis (50 patients).Based on Prasad’s scale of socioeconomic status, patients were categorized as: upper class, upper middle class, middle class, lower middle class, lower class. The association between socioeconomic status and periodontal status was then assessed. The data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Software, Version 23.0). Chi-square test was done for data summarization and presentation. Results: Majority of the patients who belonged to the upper class had clinically healthy gingiva (15.33%) and the patients who belonged to the lower class had periodontitis (16.67%). The association between socioeconomic status and oral health status was done using chi square test and it was found to be statistically significant p=0.03 (p<0.05). Conclusion: The present study reveals that periodontitis was more commonly seen in people who belong to lower socioeconomic status and people who belonged to higher socioeconomic had clinically gingiva. Therefore, there is a positive association between socioeconomic status and oral health status.