Impact of sense of coherence on oral hygiene, dental caries and periodontal status of young adults in Chennai, Tamil Nadu

Background: Sense of Coherence (SOC) is a logical factor that enables people to cope with stressors and successfully improve health. Oral health has an impact on general health and Quality of Life. This study was undertaken with the aim to assess the impact of SOC with Oral Hygiene, dental caries and periodontal status among young adults in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. 

Materials and methods: The study was conducted among 500 young adults of age group 19 to 23 years selected using cluster random sampling. SOC data were collected using 13 item standardized versions of SOC scale proposed by Antonovsky. Oral hygiene status was assessed using Oral Hygiene Index- Simplified (OHI-S) by John C Greene and Jack R Vermillion, Dental caries was assessed using WHO criteria Decayed Missing Filled Treatment (DMFT) index and Periodontal status was estimated using the Community Periodontal Index (CPI). Analysis was done using Median test and Pearson correlation to compare SOC scores with dental parameters. Level of significance was set at 0.05. 

Results: SOC scores ranged from a minimum of 22 to a maximum of 81. The mean SOC score is 52.8 ± 7.6. There was no significant association between SOC and OHI(S), and mean DMFT. CPI and LOA were found to be significantly associated with SOC. The correlation test confirms that there is a significant weak correlation (R= -0.094; p<0.05) between CPI and SOC, i.e., as SOC score increases, CPI score decreases.  However, Correlation value is not significant in LOA vs SOC. 

Conclusion: Although there was a significant relation only between SOC and CPI, the concept can be used to modify the oral health care behaviours to improve their quality of life.