Evaluation of oral health status of disabled students in a primary school

Background and Aims: Disability is a global concern, involving a wide range of world’s population in all ages and social classes. Persons with disabilities have diverse personal factors with differences in gender, age, socioeconomic status, sexuality, ethnicity, or cultural heritage. Women with disabilities experience the combined disadvantages associated with gender as well as disability. People who experience mental health conditions or intellectual impairments appear to be more disadvantage in many settings than those who experience physical or sensory impairments. Children and adolescents with disabilities appear to have poorer oral health than their nondisabled counterparts. Variable access to dental care, inadequate oral hygiene and disability-related factors may account for the differences. Materials and Methods: This observational study includes 51 mentally disabled school children aged 6 to 17 years old, live in Tehran, district18. All patients were examined for Plaque Index, Gingival Bleeding Index, DMFT/DMFT and Calculus Index by a dentist and under fluorescent light, by means of a mirror and a periodontal probe. Results: Average Plaque Index of the students was 1.74±0.66, GBI was 0.28, average of calculus Index was 0.06, DMFT was 5±4.3 and DMFT was 2.3±4.9. Conclusion: Results of this study confirms that disabled children of Tehran have poorer oral and dental condition in comparison with normal children. Therefore preventive oral hygiene programs and easy-access dental services allocating to disabled people are needed.