Comparing Caries Experience between Azadirachta indica Chewing Stick Users and Toothbrush Users among 35-44-Year-Old Rural Population of Southern India

OBJECTIVES: To compare the caries experience between Azadirachta indica chewing stick users and toothbrush users among 35-44-year-old rural population in Southern India. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This ex post facto research was conducted in the rural parts of two sub-administrative areas of a district in the Southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The sample size for the study was determined to be 400, with 200 subjects in each group. Subjects following indigenous oral hygiene methods were identified using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. After obtaining 200 subjects using A. indica chewing sticks, age, gender, and socioeconomic status matched controls using toothbrush were identified. American Dental Association type III examination was carried out to record caries experience (decayed missing filled teeth (DMFT) Index) after obtaining informed consent and thus obtained data were subjected to statistical analysis using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software, version 20. RESULTS: It was observed that the caries experience was more in toothbrush users compared to subjects following indigenous methods (DMFT, 4.38 ± 1.93 vs. 3.54 ± 1.02). Similar results were obtained when the decay component of DMFT index was exclusively compared. No significant difference in the plaque scores and the mean number of filled, missing teeth was observed between the two groups. CONCLUSION: Though conclusive results cannot be drawn from this study about the positive influence of indigenous methods on caries experience, the results emphasize the cardinal need to more thoroughly understand the potential benefits of indigenous methods before dismissing them as retrogressive approaches.