Efficiency of Miswak as an oral hygiene aid among the madrasa going children of Nuh – A socioeconomically disadvantaged district of India

Abstract

Introduction: Resources for oral health care remain limited in in rural and backward areas where an inherent need to exists to explore inexpensive cleaning aids at ease. Aim: To assess the efficiency of Miswak stick as an oral hygiene aid among madrasa-going 12–14 years old children, by comparing it with toothbrush and toothpaste in Nuh district of Haryana, India. Materials and Methods: The study population comprised of 540 madrasa-going children. 400 cases were Miswak users, whereas 140 toothbrush and toothpaste users were in the control group. Their oral hygiene status was assessed using the Gingival Index (GI), Oral hygiene index- simplified (OHI-S) and Plaque Index (PI). Decayed, Missing, Filled Teeth (DMFT) index was used to measure the dental caries incidence. The data were recorded, tabulated, and statistically analyzed. Results and Discussion: The results showed that Miswak users had significantly less mean GI score and OHI-S index scores (P = 0.001) but no statistically significant difference in PI score as compared to toothbrush and toothpaste users. Second, DMFT score was more in toothbrush and toothpaste users as compared to Miswak users. Conclusion: This study concluded that the oral hygiene status of Miswak users in the madrasa-going children of Nuh district was better than that of toothbrush and toothpaste users.