ORAL HEALTH STATUS OF MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED CHILDREN IN THE SEKONDI METROPOLITAN AREA OF GHANA

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Oral hygiene has been implicated as a causal factor in the development of dental caries and
periodontal diseases, and this may be negatively affected by physical disability and the limited understanding in
persons with intellectual needs. It was for this reason and the fact that no published study has been reported in this
group in Ghana that the need for a study of the oral hygiene status of mentally and physically challenged children
became imperative.

AIM: The main objective was to determine the oral hygiene status of physically and mentally challenged children aged 6-15
years in the Sekondi Metropolitan area of the Western Region in Ghana.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional survey to determine the oral hygiene status of physically and mentally
challenged children aged 6-15 years in the Sekondi Metropolitan area of the Western Region in Ghana.

RESULTS: The Oral Hygiene Index score (OHI-S) among 6 to 10-year-old mentally challenged school children was 2.67,
and for the age groups 11-15, the score was 3.0. Among the physically challenged, the OHI-S for age group 6-10 was 0.46,
and for the 11-15-years old, it was 0.99. These scores reflect that oral hygiene status was fair in the physically challenged
but quite poor in the mentally challenged children of comparable age.