Epidemiological and clinical correlates of oral squamous cell carcinoma in patients from north-west Pakistan.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association of oral squamous cell carcinoma with demographic variables and oral health indicators. . METHODS: The observational case-control study was conducted at the Institute of Radiotherapy and Nuclear Medicine, Peshawar, Pakistan, from November, 2015, to August, 2016.Pathologically confirmed patients with oral cancer represented the cases, while The controls were ethnically and linguistically-matched subjects without any oral pathology. Demographical, clinical and pathological data was taken down to assess variables, risk factors, and oral health indicators. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression modelling were employed for data analysis. RESULTS: Of the 551 subjects, 341(62%) were males, and 210(38%) were females. Of the total, 276(50.1%) were cases and 275(49.9%) were controls. The mean age of the cases was 55.013.4 years and that of the controls was 52.814.9 years (p=0.073). Poor oral hygiene, periodontal diseases, material of toothbrush, and no use of mouthwash were significant predictors of oral cancer (p<0.05 each). Smoking and using smokeless tobacco were also significant variables. CONCLUSIONS: Oral health indicators in combination with smoking conferred an increased risk of oral cancer.