Association of Age, Gender and Disability to the Dental Trauma Among Institutionalized People in Karachi: An Observational Study

Introduction Dental trauma is an irreversible injury that may occur in both children and adults. Disability has been identified as a risk factor for dental injuries; however, the distribution of disabilities and dental trauma among people in Pakistan who live in shelters/institutes is unknown. Thus, the current study sought to investigate the frequency of disability and its association with dental trauma among individuals residing in Pakistan’s special institutions. Methods An observational study was conducted. A total of 200 institutionalized subjects were recruited for the current study. The groups comprised a case group ( n = 100) with dental trauma and a control group ( n = 100) without dental trauma. Data were gathered from people who live full-time in various shelters/institutions in Karachi. The odd ratios (OR) were derived to assess the association of dental trauma with gender, age, and disability. Results Participants with disabilities had higher odds of experiencing dental trauma, with an OR of 14.426 ( P = < 0.001*), compared to non-disabled participants. Among the study population, the most commonly reported type of disability was mental retardation (MR), accounting for 38%. Individuals under 20 years of age had higher odds (2.953) of having dental trauma compared to those over 20 years old ( P = 0.002*). Conclusion MR among institutionalized people is the most prevalent type of disability. Disabled people are more vulnerable to dental trauma, living full time in shelters/institutions. There is a need to implement oral health protection strategies for all individuals residing in special shelters in Karachi.