Ethnic disparities in the prevalence of periodontitis among high school students in Sudan.

Background: There are limited data on the epidemiology and risk factors of periodontitis in young populations in developing nations. This study assesses the prevalence of periodontal attachment loss and aggressive periodontitis and the association with ethnicity among high school students in Sudan.

Methods: The study sample consisted of 1,200 students, 13 to 19 years old, selected from 38 public and private high schools using a multistage, stratified sampling design. The subjects were interviewed and examined clinically. Periodontal parameters were assessed at six sites per tooth. Subjects with aggressive periodontitis were identified.

Results: A total of 3.4% of the subjects had aggressive periodontitis, and 16.3% and 8.2% of the subjects had at least one tooth with > or = 4 and > or = 5 mm attachment loss, respectively. A significantly higher percentage of subjects of African tribal ethnicity had attachment loss > or = 4 and > or = 5 mm compared to Afro-Arab tribes (19.8% versus 14.7%, P = 0.02; and 12% versus 6.4%, P = 0.004, respectively), and had a higher prevalence of aggressive periodontitis (6% versus 2.3%; P = 0.01) and higher risk of being diagnosed with this disease (odds ratio = 2.7; P <0.0001). African ethnicity was also associated with a significantly higher number of teeth with attachment loss than in Afro-Arabs (P <0.01). Comparison by gender showed a significantly higher percentage of males with aggressive periodontitis (4.9% versus 2%; P <0.01) and a higher risk for this disease (odds ratio = 2.5; P = 0.01) than in females. However, the prevalence of subjects with attachment loss > or = 4 and > or = 5 mm was comparable in the two gender groups.

Conclusions: Our results show that aggressive periodontitis is highly prevalent in this population. African ethnicity (versus Afro-Arab) and male gender were risk factors for aggressive periodontitis.