To assess the oral health status and awareness about the oral hygiene measures of the jackal people (Narikuravar tribes)-A cross sectional study

Introduction: The Narikuravar are an indigenous group of people, living in Tamil Nadu in South India. The study related to health of the Narikuravar was not obtained over the last hundred years. Hence the aim of this study is to assess the oral health status and awareness about the oral hygiene measures of the jackal people (Narikuravar tribes). Methodology: This cross-sectional survey was conducted among Narikuravar colony, Valliyoor, Tirunelveli district in Tamil Nadu, India. The total population of the Narikuravar colony is 212 and a universal sampling selection has been done for the study. A close ended, structured questionnaire, WHOperforma 2013 were used for assessing their oral hygiene methods and status and their level of tobacco addiction. Positive mean scores of all the questions were calculated using student’s t and One-way ANOVA test at p value < 0.05. Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used to assess the relation of age group and dental visit. Results: Total number of Narikuravar tribes examined were 109 in which males were about 54 and females were 55. About 5 person are affected with nine carious tooth and more than ten carious are affected in 4 males and 9 females. 31 males and 30 females have no missing teeth and 23 males and 25 females had minimum one missing tooth. It is found that 2males and 1female have periodontal pocket depth ≥12mm. Highest of ≥10 carious teeth are found in 11 brushing individuals and 2 individuals who never brush their teeth. Ash and Brick powder was used majorly for tooth cleaning. Conclusion: The study reveals poor knowledge and lack of awareness about the oral health was seen among the Narikuravar tribes. In order to achieve the greatest effectiveness of dental health interventions, dental health educators must carefully choose the target populations with poor preventive dental behaviors.