European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

PREVALENCE OF MISSING FIRST MOLARS IN SOUTH INDIAN POPULATION

Mithra N. Hegde*; Anish Kumar Lagisetti*; Chitharanjan Shetty*

ABSTRACT

Aim: The aim and objectives of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of missing first molars in South Indian population. Materials And Methods: The study was conducted on 2000 patients attending the Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, A. B.Shetty Memorial Institute of Dental Sciences, Mangalore and Rural Satellite centres of NITTE University. Each patient was examined for missing first molars under dental chair in a good illumination using sterilized armamentarium. The patients who have Missing first Molars were questioned with a standard questionnaire. Results: Prevalence of missing first molars in south Indian population is 44%. It is most commonly seen in Mandibular molars (29.8%) than maxillary molars (18%). The Mandibular right first molar (33.35%) is most commonly missing tooth and Maxillary left first molar tooth is least prevalent. The prevalence of missing molars is commonly seen in males (55.7%) than females (44.3%). The most common etiological factor for loss of first molar tooth is dental caries (72.7%). It is most commonly seen in manual workers (40.7%) and people with business as occupation (23.1%). Missing first molars is most commonly seen in age groups of 36-45 years (32%).The most commonly found occlusal problem is tilting of adjacent teeth. Conclusion: Loss of first molars is most commonly seen in males with increased prevalence in 36-45years of age. It is most commonly seen in Mandibular right first molar tooth and least commonly seen in Maxillary left first molar tooth. The common etiological factor for loss is dental caries.

Keywords: Missing, Molars, Caries.