Risk prediction for oral potentially malignant disorders using fuzzy analysis of cytomorphological and autofluorescence alterations in habitual smokers

Abstract

Aim: This study aims to develop a novel noninvasive method for early cancer trend diagnosis in habitual smokers by corroborating cytomorphological and autofluorescence alterations. Materials & methods: A total of 120 subjects were included and categorized into nonsmoker, smoker and clinically diagnosed oral potentially malignant disorder (OPMD) patients. Oral exfoliative epithelial cells were studied through differential interference contrast and fluorescence microscopy. Fuzzy trend analysis was performed using measured parameters for determining the risk factors among smokers. Results: The risk assessment in this study showed a positive correlation of smoking duration with early cancer risk factors with a correlation co-efficient of 0.86. Conclusion: Alterations in cellular morphology and autofluorescence intensities showed positive correlation with OPMD. The present study will benefit to investigate early prediction of OPMD among susceptible individuals.