Prevalence of Tobacco-associated Oral Mucosal Lesions in Tobacco Users Visiting the Dental College: A Cross-sectional Study

Consumption of tobacco and its byproducts has a negative impact on our community health, which to date, remains a major challenge for the whole world.Existing evidence has proven the strong association of the development of oral potentially malignant disorders and malignancy with increased usage of tobacco.Oral malignancies have a high prevalence rate among the Southeast Asian population.Tobacco consumption has a severe impact on the personal, social, and economic status of the individual.To access the various factors, including occupation, education level, and occurrence of oral mucosal lesions among the population, we have conducted a study on 2,000 patients visiting a Dental College, Barwala, Haryana, with an age range from 35 to 44 years.Patients were divided into three groups: Non-tobacco users, tobacco users without oral mucosal lesions, and tobacco users with oral mucosal lesions.The study found that 36.65% of patients consumed tobacco, with 11.4% exhibiting tobacco-associated oral mucosal lesions.The most common lesion was smoker's melanosis (35%), followed by tobacco pouch keratosis (25.8%), and leukoplakia (12.2%).The prevalence of tobacco use was higher among individuals with lower education levels and those in skilled/ unskilled occupations as compared to professionals.Additionally, the duration of tobacco use was positively associated with the occurrence of oral lesions, with those using tobacco for over 10 years having a higher prevalence of lesions.These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions, including public education, cessation programs, and routine oral health screenings, particularly in high-risk groups, to reduce the burden of tobacco-related oral diseases in India and the Southeast Asian population.