title: Gingival enlargement in different age groups during fixed Orthodontic treatment.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  During fixed orthodontic therapy, adolescents tend to have higher chances of gingivitis and gingival enlargement (GE) compared to adults. A cross sectional study was undertaken to evaluate the above hypothesis, by assessing GE in patients of different age groups receiving fixed orthodontic therapy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients undergoing orthodontic treatment were selected by simple random sampling from the King Khalid University College of Dentistry out patient's clinic of preventive dental sciences division to form the study group. Participant's were divided into three age groups and GE was graded as 0, 1 and 2 as per the classification of the American Academy of Periodontology. Data were analyzed by using IBM SPSS version 16.0 (Statistical Package for Social Services, Chicago, IL, USA) and descriptive statistics were obtained. Differences in proportions were compared using the Chi-square test and the significance level was set at p ≤ 0.05.
  
  
  RESULTS
  62.3% (n=33) were males and 37.7% (n=20) were females. Group 1 had 21 patients (39.7%); Group 2 had 24 patients (45.3%) and Group 3 had 8 patients (15.1%).The highest frequency (48%) of GE was observed among the Group 1 age group (10-19 years). Differences in frequency of GE according to age groups were found to be statistically significant (p=0.046).Differences in GE according to the frequency of practicing oral hygiene measures were statistically significant (p<0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Highest frequency of GE was observed among the adolescents. The patients who practiced oral hygiene measures more than three times daily did not have any GE. On the other hand, those who brushed and flossed only once daily had the highest percentage of grade 2 GE. How to cite the article: Eid HA, Assiri HA, Kandyala R, Togoo RA, Turakhia VS. Gingival enlargement in different age groups during fixed Orthodontic treatment. J Int Oral Health 2014;6(1):1-4.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Medicine & Periodontology, Faculty of Dentistry, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt; Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Abha, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Hossam A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Eid
authors.affiliation: Department of Maxillofacial and Diagnostic Science, King Khalid University College of Dentistry, Abha, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Hassan Ahmed M
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Assiri
authors.affiliation: Department of Maxillofacial and Diagnostic Science, King Khalid University College of Dentistry, Abha, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Reena
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kandyala
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, King Khalid University College of Dentistry, Abha, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Rafi A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Togoo
authors.affiliation: Department of Periodontics & Implantology, Maharana Pratap College of Dentistry and Research Centre, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India.
authors.forename: Viral S
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Turakhia
keywords: Gingival enlargement; adolescents; fixed orthodontic treatment