Comparison of Dental Caries and Malocclusion Prevalence Patterns Among the General Population of Erode and Namakkal Districts (Western Tamil Nadu) - An Analytical Cross- Sectional Study

AIM: The aim of the study is to record the prevalence patterns of dental caries and malocclusion among the general population of western Tamilnadu (Erode and Namakkal districts). MATERIALS & METHODS: A Cross-sectional study was carried out in the selected number of samples to find out the prevalence of Dental Caries and Malocclusion in the index age group of 5, 12, 15, 35 – 44, 65-74 years and 12 and 15 years, respectively using “WHO oral Health assessment form 1997”. A total of 305 samples for Dental Caries and 544 samples for Malocclusion were collected in Western Tamil Nadu, India, using a Multistage random sampling technique. Samples were recruited from the randomly selected districts of Western Tamil Nadu i.e., Erode and Namakkal. Descriptive analysis was done using Microsoft Excel version 2016. The statistical test used was chi-square using SPSS Software Version 20. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of Dental caries was higher in the Namakkal district (60%) than in the Erode district (51.4%), and the overall prevalence of Malocclusion was also higher in the Namakkal district (36.2%) than in the Erode district (30.7%). The prevalence of dental caries and Malocclusion were recorded as high among the rural population in the Erode and Namakkal districts. CONCLUSION: The Western part of Tamilnadu (Erode and Namakkal district) records the high prevalence rates for Dental caries and Malocclusion, implicating the need for oral health awareness in that zone. Key words: Dental Caries, Malocclusion, Oral Health, Prevalence