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VOLUME 5 , ISSUE 4 ( October-December, 2014 ) > List of Articles

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Cigarette smoking and Awareness of Oral Health Problems of Tobacco use among Students at the University of Port Harcourt, South-South Nigeria

Braimoh Omoigberai Bashiru, Umanah Ayamma Udo

Citation Information : Bashiru BO, Udo UA. Cigarette smoking and Awareness of Oral Health Problems of Tobacco use among Students at the University of Port Harcourt, South-South Nigeria. World J Dent 2014; 5 (4):209-212.

DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10015-1291

Published Online: 01-09-2016

Copyright Statement:  Copyright © 2014; The Author(s).


Abstract

Objectives

Cigarette smoking is recognized as the most important environmental risk factor in periodontitis and also an important risk factor for oral cancer. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of cigarette smoking and awareness of oral health problems of tobacco use among university students in Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

Materials and methods

The study population consisted of 360 young adults: 188 (52.2%) males and 172 (47.8%) females. Participants answered questions regarding demography, smoking behavior, attitude and on oral effect of smoking. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS (New York, USA) statistics version 20.0 and test of significance done using Chi-square.

Results

The overall prevalence of smoking was 78 (21.7%): 52 (27.7%) in males and 26 (15.1%) in females. Males significantly smoked more than females (p = 0.002). Fifty-one (65.4%) of the current smokers commenced smoking in secondary school, 39 (50%) had smoked for 6 to 10 years, 54 (69.2%) consumed one to five sticks of cigarettes per day and among those who quitted smoking, 39 (52%) stopped smoking for health reasons. While 262 (72.8%) were ignorant that smoking was harmful to oral health, 223 (61.9%) and 278 (77.2%) respectively could not identify smoking as a risk factor for oral cancers and gum disease.

Conclusion

Though majority of the students were aware of the negative impact of smoking on general health, most of them were ignorant of the effect on oral health. Therefore, shared risk approach should be employed to inform, guide and educate the public on the effects of tobacco and in the campaign against its use.

How to cite this article

Bashiru BO, Udo UA. Cigarette smoking and Awareness of Oral Health Problems of Tobacco use among Students at the University of Port Harcourt, South- South Nigeria. World J Dent 2014;5(4):209-212.


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