Self-Reported Prevalence & Associated Factors for Occurrence of Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis (RAS) in Undergraduate Medical & Dental Students

• Main Authors: Saira Afridi (Author), Jawad Ahmad Kundi (Author), Faisal Hayat (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: Gandhara University, 2014-09-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.

Summary

Background: Recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS) is the most common painful oral lesions that occur frequently in young adults; however the etiology still remains unknown. The present study was conducted to explore the prevalence of RAS in undergraduate medical & dental students as these are the group who are in their early adulthood and are prone to stress during studies . Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional survey carried out in Gandhara University. Two hundred students of MBBS & BDS participated in the questionnaire survey. Interview was done through a close-ended questionnaire to report the prevalence of RAS, the associated history, clinical features & preferred treatment. Results: Prevalence of RAS was found to be 87.5% in the study population. Most common site was lower lip where 20% people have ever experienced oral ulcer. Most of the participants (46%) tried topical gels and 55% found the treatment effective. Majority was not sure which medication they used. Approximately half (48%) of the students associated the ulcer onset with their psychological stress. Conclusion: The prevalence of RAS was found to be alarming (85.7%) among medical and dental students of Gandhara University. The most common associated factors as experienced and reported by the students were found to be family predisposition and psychological stress.

Item Description

10.37762/jgmds.1-1.73
2312-9433
2618-1452