Journal of AdvancedMedical and Dental Sciences Research

Background: Smoking has been considered to be an epidemic affecting globally. Its side-effects as well as adverse effects are of common knowledge. These may range from discoloration or staining of tooth structures to manifestations such as oral and lung cancers. The smoking habit has demonstrated major consequences on periodontal tissue health and may even affect outcomes of periodontal treatment or therapy. Although awareness of these oral effects among the general population has been shown to increase, very little is known about the side-effects of smoking on the health of the periodontium. Aim: This study aimed to assess the knowledge regarding the presence of smoking habits and periodontal diseases among the general population. Materials and methods: This prospective and cross-sectional study analysis was performed on 300 study participants who attended the dental out-patient department for seeking dental treatment. The objective of this study was explained in a detailed manner to all study subjects. After this, written informed consent was collected. Statistical data analysis was performed by analyzing the collected data by using the SPSS (Statistical Software Package for Social Sciences), Version XII. Results: 60 % of subjects were smokers whereas 40 % of subjects had no history of smoking. 55 % of study participants were educated among the smokers' group while 45 % among the non-smokers had no education. 15 % of study participants were of low-income group. On analyzing the frequencies of maintaining oral hygiene status, it was observed that there was no significance (P = 0.6) between smokers who performed brushing regularly on comparing with subjects with no history of smoking. However, in the present study, a low level of knowledge was seen in both the smokers and non-smoking subjects on the bad effects of the habit of smoking on periodontal health. Conclusion: There appears to be a lack of knowledge in the general population regarding the effects of smoking on periodontal health and thus, efforts should be made to increase the awareness by dentists who meet their patients regularly. Keywords: Smokers, non-smokers, periodontitis, knowledge.