Prevalence of Oral Cancer, Potentially Malignant Lesions and Oral Habits among Patients Visiting Dental School, Sana’a University

Purpose: Qat chewing, smoking, smokeless tobacco (locally known as shammah) and waterpipe smoking (locally known as madaah) are common habits in Yemen. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of oral cancerous and precancerous lesions, and to investigate the prevalence of oral risk habits among Yemeni adults attending outpatient dental clinics, Sana‘a University. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study involved 304 adults aged 14–87 years, who attended outpatient clinics at the Faculty of Dentistry, Sana‘a University, Yemen. The participants were interviewed individually for socioeconomic status, oral risk habits, oral hygiene practices, systemic health, as well as history and current use of medications. Detailed oral examination of the oral cavity was performed by a single examiner based on international criteria and WHO codes. Results: There were more males 206 (67.8%) than females 98 (32.2%). The mean age for the study population was 42.61 years. The prevalence of Qat-associated white lesions, Smokeless tobacco-related lesions, leukoplakia, lichen planus, and oral cancer was 8.9%, 2.3%, 0.7%, 0.7%, 0.3%, respectively. The prevalence of Qat chewing, smoking, waterpipe smoking, smokeless tobacco chewing was 58.2%, 24.3%, 7.6%, and 7.6% respectively. Oral precancerous lesions were significantly higher in males than in females (P < 0.05). Likewise, an association was found between the occurrence of oral precancerous lesions and practice of oral habits (P < 0.05). Conclusions:This study provides information about habit trends among patients visiting this institution. It also reinforces the association between tobacco products and oral precancerous lesions.