Association between taboos in dentistry and oral health behavior among adult population of Ghaziabad

To study taboos in dentistry and their effect on adult oral health behavior in Ghaziabad.

Cross-sectional community based questionnaire survey was conducted on sample of 350 adults aged 20years and above from Ghaziabad urban and rural areas. Multistage random sampling technique was used. Single field trained and calibrated investigator collected data by interviewing study subjects using pretested structured, close ended questionnaire consisting of self-designed questions seeking on taboos related to dentistry and oral health behavior besides socio-demographic variables. Kappa co-efficient of questionnaire content was 0.80. Data was entered and analyzed using SPSS software version 21.0. Chi square analysis showed intergroup comparisons. Results: Taboos related to dentistry were prevalent in urban and rural areas. Significant gender difference among subjects who believed that there was no need to visit dentist until all permanent teeth erupt and better not to brush teeth when gums bleed were highly prevalent among females (p<0.05) from both urban and rural areas. Significant association between prevalent taboos and Dental visit variables were reported. Conclusion: Taboos related to dentistry has negative effect on adult oral health behavior.