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Epidemiological survey of oral submucous fibrosis and leukoplakia in aborigines of Taiwan
Author(s) -
Yang YiHsin,
Lee HsiuYu,
Tung Sen,
Shieh TienYu
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
journal of oral pathology and medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.887
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1600-0714
pISSN - 0904-2512
DOI - 10.1034/j.1600-0714.2001.300404.x
Subject(s) - areca , oral submucous fibrosis , medicine , leukoplakia , betel , epidemiology , oral leukoplakia , dentistry , population , dermatology , odds ratio , environmental health , cancer , structural engineering , nut , engineering
A population‐based survey was designed to investigate the prevalence of areca/betel quid chewing, oral submucous fibrosis and leukoplakia in a typical aboriginal community of southern Taiwan. Three hundred and twelve people 20 years of age or older were collected in the study. The prevalence of chewing areca/betel quid was 69.5%, with an average of 17.3 portions a day for an average 24.4 years. More women (78.7%) than men (60.6%) chewed areca/betel quid. The prevalences of oral submucous fibrosis and leukoplakia were 17.6% and 24.4%, respectively. It was found that the odds ratio for chewing areca/betel quid and having at least one of the above oral mucosal lesions was 8.21. Any additional smoking or drinking habits were not significant for having oral mucosal lesions. Although the areca/betel quid in Taiwan does not contain any tobacco, a significant association was still identified between areca/betel quid chewing and oral mucosal lesions.