Demographic Profiling of Patients with Leukoplakia Visiting a Dental Hospital in Chennai, India - An Institutional Study

Abstract

Introduction: Oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMDs) are a group of conditions that predispose to the development of oral cancers. A few of the commonly recurring OPMDs include leukoplakia, oral submucous fibrosis, Smokers’ palate, and oral lichen planus. Leukoplakia is more common in specific populations, attributed to their habits and environmental circumstances. Hence, early diagnosis with biopsies on suspecting these lesions during regular oral health check-up ensures timely referral and addressal of the disorder. The present study aims to demographically profile patients with Leukoplakia visiting a private dental hospital in Chennai.
 Aim: To demographically profile patients diagnosed with Leukoplakia, visiting a dental hospital in Chennai, a major city in the state of Tamil Nadu, India.
 Materials and Methods: From the patients visiting the private dental hospital, those clinically diagnosed with Leukoplakia were considered in the inclusion criteria. Exclusion criteria involved those with poor maintenance of records and lack of follow-up of uncooperative patients. The sample size was n=100. The gender, age and locality of residence were considered and tabulated, followed by their statistical analysis using SPSS software version 22.0. 
 Results: From the results of the current study, it was observed that there was a greater male predilection to the occurrence of Leukoplakia (99%) compared to females (1%). A greater number of cases were seen in the age group of 41-50 years (34%), while the least number of cases were seen in patients of 21-30 years (7%). Among the cases reported, most patients were from Thiruvallur (40%), Chennai district (30%) followed by Kancheepuram district (17%) in Tamilnadu .
 Conclusion: From the study, it can be concluded that Leukoplakia is more prevalent among the middle aged male population and was found to be predominantly occurring in the regions of Thiruvallur and Chennai districts in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.