Oral Submucous Fibrosis: Correlation of Clinical Grading to Various Habit Factors

The aim of this study was to correlate the clinical grading of oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF) with various habit factors and to observe the habit factors associated with the severity of OSMF.

This study was carried out in the Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, Kalinga Institute of Dental Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India. Two hundred patients clinically diagnosed with OSMF were included in the study. The observations were tabulated and subjected to statistical analysis using chi-square test and Spearman's rank correlation test.

A total of 200 subjects participated in the study of which 182 were males and 18 were females. Forty-eight males and nine females had Grade I OSMF. One hundred nineteen males and eight females had Grade II OSMF. Fifteen males and only one female had Grade III OSMF. On the basis of functional staging, the total participants in stage I, stage II, and stage III were 185, 14, and 1, respectively. The participants having Grade I, Grade II, and Grade III OSMF with functional staging I were 57, 122, and 6, respectively. The participants having Grade II and Grade III OSMF with functional staging II were 5 and 9, respectively.

It is alarming that nearly half of the total subjects were in the younger age group and were having OSMF. Also, as the age increased, the subjects were found to be more attracted to consuming areca nut derivatives in the form of betel quid with or without tobacco. It is recommended that community-oriented outreach programs on oral health awareness be developed, emphasizing children who represent the upcoming future, to avoid/quit areca nut and its derivatives.