Self-Reported Oral Hygiene Practices and Periodontal Status of Visually Impaired Adults

This study investigated self-reported oral hygiene practices and periodontal status of visually impaired adults. Aconvenient sample of visually impaired adults who were trainees at the Malaysian Association for the Blind(MAB) participated in the study. Data were collected through a face-to-face interview and clinical dentalexamination. An assessment of visual acuity determined types of visual impairment. Thirty-nine adults wereexamined (response rate=65.0%). Most were females (56.4%) and aged between 21-30 years (66.7%). Abouthalf were blind, 20.5% had low vision and the rest had at least one eye with normal vision. Many reported tobrush teeth at least twice a day (82.1%), used toothbrush and toothpaste (97.4%) but hardly used dental floss.Almost all had experienced symptoms like tooth sensitivity (53.8%) and inflamed and painful gums (43.6%).Average percentage of sites with plaque and bleeding were 81.7%, and 35.1 respectively. Although good oralhygiene practices were reported, periodontal status was poor and periodontal treatment needs were high.