Oral hygiene status, oral mucosal lesions and body mass index of children living in internally displaced persons’ camps

Abstract

Introduction: Children are major recipients of the hazards associated with internal displacement. Objectives: The study assessed the oral hygiene status, oral mucosal lesions (OML) and body mass index (BMI) of children living among internally displaced persons’ camps in Plateau state.Methods: Using a cross-sectional study design, a multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 300 children aged 2 – 13 years with history of ≥2 months IDP camp stay duration from IDPs’ camps in Plateau state. An interviewer-administered questionnaire and oral examination was used to collect data. Data was analyzed using SPSS 23. Ethical approval and permissions from relevant authorities were obtained.Result: A total of 300 questionnaires were distributed and 295 (98.3%) were returned correctly filled. The participants (98.3%) were males (55.6 %) and females (44.4%). Majority (61.3%) had fair oral hygiene status. The mean oral hygiene index (OHI) score was associated with age-group (p=0.001) and camp location (p=0.001) with plaque as main contributor. Oral mucosal lesion prevalence was 2.7%. The mean OHI scores increased with increasing BMI and was significant. Conclusion: Plaque was the main contributor to the fair oral hygiene status of the children and it was associated with age, camp location and BMI. The prevalence of OML was low.