Abstract
Aim: To evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practice on partially edentulous condition among transgender.
Introduction: Partial edentulism is a condition where one or more teeth are missing but never all. The consequences of not replacing missing tooth/teeth includes supra eruption of the opposing tooth/teeth, mesial drifting of adjacent tooth/teeth, inability to talk properly, changes in facial features and sinus expansion which leads to chronic headache finally temporomandibular disorders. Studies strongly suggest that, dental caries and periodontal disease were the major causes of tooth loss in early childhood and adolescence. Transgender community doesn’t bother about their oral health because of their lower socioeconomic status…show more content… A wide range of physical variations and health conditions are exhibited by the partially edentulous patients. Teeth loss affects proper speech, mastication, chewing and may result in poor esthetics which affects the quality of life.[9,10] Trauma, tooth impaction, orthodontic reasons, hypoplasia, over eruption, supernumerary teeth, attrition, neoplastic and cystic lesions are also the other reasons for the tooth loss. The further more reasons for the tooth loss are lower intake of fruits and vegetables, fiber, and carotene and increased cholesterol and saturated fats, increased rates of chronic inflammatory changes, increased rate of diabetes mellitus type 2, increased risk of hypertension, heart failure, stroke and heart diseases. Decreased daily function of tooth, physical activity also may be the reasons for the tooth…show more content… Exclusion criteria
Transgender with completely edentulous condition.
Transgender with severe medical illness, physically and mentally retarded.
Structure of questionnaire
The study involved a complete predesigned questionnaire. A 17 item based questionnaire was prepared based on the primary objective of the study. The questionnaire includes questions related to the causes of missing tooth, its consequences and treatment and the dental visit. The questionnaire was prepared in English and later translated to their regional language tamil.
Knowledge on partial edentulism: Assessment of awareness of partially edentulous state, consequences of not replacing missing tooth.
Attitude on partial edentulism: Assessment of regular dental visit.
Practice on partial edentulism: Assessment of tobacco related habits and food habits.
The participants are asked to put the responses to questionnaire. Some who don’t understand are explained. The completed questionnaire was carefully checked.
Statistical analysis
All the obtained data were entered in the Microsoft excel sheet and analyzed by SPSS version 20 using anova