Login
News & Updation
Best Paper Awards
World Journal of Advance Healthcare Research (WJAHR)Honored the authors with best paper award, monthly based on the innovation of research work. Best paper will be selected by our expert panel.
Best Article of current issue
Download Article : Click here
Indexing
Abstract
UNDERSTANDING HOW ORAL HEALTH INDICATORS PREDICTS DEPRESSION AND GENDER AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN EASTERN NIGERIA
Dr. Agwu Michael Ezenna* and Dr. Iwuoha Egiroghene Carol
ABSTRACT
Background: Oral health is increasingly being recognized by health officials as a mirror image of the overall health. Consequently, monitoring oral health is an essential strategy in monitoring overall health and planning intervention. The mouth is an important factor in social communication and therefore may be the origin of concern not only for a possible health condition but also for frequent psychological alterations leading to social and personal isolation. Monitoring oral health indicators such as teeth cleaning, state of gum and teeth, oral hygiene, source oforal health information etc. may be an important step in predicting oral health status This is the first study that examined the association between oral health indicators with depression and gender.in Nigeria especially among university students. Aims: The aim of this study is to determine the association between oral health indicators with depression and gender. Method: This is a cross sectional descriptive study. Full time university students were recruited from the department of public health in the University of Calabar, Cross River state Nigeria. Data collection was based on an anonymous questionnaire and the sample size was (n= 291). Descriptive tests and chi-square tests were conducted. Results: The study indicated that oral health indicators such as state of the gum and the frequency of teeth cleaning were related to students? depression. On the other hand sources of oral health information and the state of the teeth are significantly related to gender. Conclusion: This study is the first to gauge oral health indicators in in Nigeria and will provide a baseline data for further research within Nigeria, using a larger sample in a quantitative approach. However, the result indicated that oral health should be included in the primary health care and should be considered when planning interventions for depression.
[Full Text Article] [Download Certificate]