Magnitude and Associated Factors of Oral Gingivitis Among Patients Attending Public and Private Dental Clinics in Harar Town, Eastern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Magnitude and Associated Factors of Oral Gingivitis Among Patients Attending Public and Private Dental Clinics in Harar Town, Eastern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Magnitude and Associated Factors of Oral Gingivitis Among Patients Attending Public and Private Dental Clinics in Harar Town, Eastern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study Birhanu Admasu, Nahom Girma Belete, Nahom Abate Esayas, Melake Demena, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6908358/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background: Gingivitis, an early and reversible stage of periodontal disease, is a prevalent oral health problem linked to discomfort, poor quality of life, and progression to periodontitis. Despite being preventable, it remains overlooked in many low-resource settings, including Ethiopia. In Harar Town, limited data exist on its burden and associated risk factors. Objective: To assess the prevalence of gingivitis and identify sociodemographic and behavioral risk factors among patients attending dental clinics in Harar Town, Eastern Ethiopia. Method: A facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted from November 21 to December 5, 2023, among 416 patients aged ≥5 years with the provision of informed consent or assent with guardian approval. Participants were selected using stratified and systematic random sampling from two public and six private dental clinics. Data were collected through structured interviews and clinical examinations using the WHO’s Modified Community Periodontal Index (CPI), with gingivitis defined as CPI ≥1. Binary logistic regression identified independent predictors, with adjusted odds ratios (AORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Result: Out of 416 individuals who participated in the study, 402 responded, yielding a response rate of 96.6%. The mean age of participants was 31.86 (±16.32 SD) years, with ages ranging from 5 to 78 years. The overall prevalence of gingivitis among the respondents was 48.5%. Significant predictors included male sex (AOR = 2.21; 95% CI: 1.19–4.12), rural residence (AOR = 2.67; 95% CI: 1.36–5.26), monthly income <3500 ETB (AOR = 2.65; 95% CI: 1.36–5.16), and illiteracy (AOR = 3.73; 95% CI: 1.37–10.14). Behavioral factors included infrequent tooth brushing (AOR = 4.51; 95% CI: 2.29–8.89), self-perceived halitosis (AOR = 2.03; 95% CI: 1.00–4.14), lack of oral health information (AOR = 2.34; 95% CI: 1.09–5.02), khat chewing (AOR = 2.65; 95% CI: 1.37–5.11), smoking (AOR = 3.63; 95% CI: 1.58–8.36), alcohol use (AOR = 4.20; 95% CI: 1.60–11.02), and frequent refined carbohydrate intake between meal (AOR = 2.56; 95% CI: 1.19–5.49). Conclusion: Gingivitis is common in Harar Town and is strongly associated with modifiable factors. Targeted oral health education and behavioral interventions are recommended. Gingivitis Oral hygiene Risk factors Tooth brushing Harar Ethiopia Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 29 Jul, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 28 Jul, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 28 Jul, 2025 First submitted to journal 16 Jun, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6908358","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":477748260,"identity":"4bda6c3b-3197-40f3-b1bf-1ec71d7e218c","order_by":0,"name":"Birhanu Admasu","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA50lEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACAzBiYJBj7G8+AKQlZIjWYsw841gCSAsP0VoS2xtywAzCWszZD2/d8OPPYcbehjOfX92oseBhYD98dAM+LZY9aWU3e9sOM0s2926zzjkGdBhPWtoNvA47kGN2g7fhMJthw9ltxjlsQC0SPGb4tZx/Y3bzz5/DPPYHcp4Z5/wjRsuNHLPbPGyHJRgbcpgf57YRocVyxrOy27Jt6QaMM46ZMef2SfCwEfKLOX/ytptv/ljXN/Y3P/6c861Ojp/98DG8WpABmwSYJFY5CDB/IEX1KBgFo2AUjBwAADSTToxBb8DyAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"","institution":"Hiwot Fana Specialized University Hospital","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Birhanu","middleName":"","lastName":"Admasu","suffix":""},{"id":477748261,"identity":"a2c84c08-ce88-4c44-8be6-29d3bf8640aa","order_by":1,"name":"Nahom Girma Belete","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Hiwot Fana Specialized University Hospital","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Nahom","middleName":"Girma","lastName":"Belete","suffix":""},{"id":477748262,"identity":"5e9fc72b-2db0-4293-8ca3-1bca94cf83ea","order_by":2,"name":"Nahom Abate Esayas","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"GOAL Ethiopia","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Nahom","middleName":"Abate","lastName":"Esayas","suffix":""},{"id":477748263,"identity":"b1994539-530a-4cd0-b40b-260869396fc6","order_by":3,"name":"Melake Demena","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Haramaya University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Melake","middleName":"","lastName":"Demena","suffix":""},{"id":477748264,"identity":"d3da8b41-f4a1-4b2d-98f5-8e09205dacda","order_by":4,"name":"Belay Negash","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Haramaya University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Belay","middleName":"","lastName":"Negash","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-06-16 20:08:15","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6908358/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6908358/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":86993079,"identity":"f871b081-bc98-40f6-9f06-0a872ec84f14","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-07-18 04:55:21","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":524888,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"BirhanusFinalManuscriptRevised..pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6908358/v1_covered_f5308e16-84d9-403e-937b-45a6e7bcd852.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Magnitude and Associated Factors of Oral Gingivitis Among Patients Attending Public and Private Dental Clinics in Harar Town, Eastern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"bmc-oral-health","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"ohea","sideBox":"Learn more about [BMC Oral Health](http://bmcoralhealth.biomedcentral.com/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"https://www.editorialmanager.com/ohea/default.aspx","title":"BMC Oral Health","twitterHandle":"BMC_series","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"BMC Series","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Gingivitis, Oral hygiene, Risk factors, Tooth brushing, Harar, Ethiopia","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6908358/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6908358/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBackground:\u003c/strong\u003e Gingivitis, an early and reversible stage of periodontal disease, is a prevalent oral health problem linked to discomfort, poor quality of life, and progression to periodontitis. Despite being preventable, it remains overlooked in many low-resource settings, including Ethiopia. In Harar Town, limited data exist on its burden and associated risk factors. Objective: To assess the prevalence of gingivitis and identify sociodemographic and behavioral risk factors among patients attending dental clinics in Harar Town, Eastern Ethiopia.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMethod:\u003c/strong\u003e A facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted from November 21 to December 5, 2023, among 416 patients aged ≥5 years with the provision of informed consent or assent with guardian approval. Participants were selected using stratified and systematic random sampling from two public and six private dental clinics. Data were collected through structured interviews and clinical examinations using the WHO’s Modified Community Periodontal Index (CPI), with gingivitis defined as CPI ≥1. Binary logistic regression identified independent predictors, with adjusted odds ratios (AORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Statistical significance was set at p \u0026lt; 0.05.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eResult:\u003c/strong\u003e Out of 416 individuals who participated in the study, 402 responded, yielding a response rate of 96.6%. The mean age of participants was 31.86 (±16.32 SD) years, with ages ranging from 5 to 78 years. The overall prevalence of gingivitis among the respondents was 48.5%. Significant predictors included male sex (AOR = 2.21; 95% CI: 1.19–4.12), rural residence (AOR = 2.67; 95% CI: 1.36–5.26), monthly income \u0026lt;3500 ETB (AOR = 2.65; 95% CI: 1.36–5.16), and illiteracy (AOR = 3.73; 95% CI: 1.37–10.14). Behavioral factors included infrequent tooth brushing (AOR = 4.51; 95% CI: 2.29–8.89), self-perceived halitosis (AOR = 2.03; 95% CI: 1.00–4.14), lack of oral health information (AOR = 2.34; 95% CI: 1.09–5.02), khat chewing (AOR = 2.65; 95% CI: 1.37–5.11), smoking (AOR = 3.63; 95% CI: 1.58–8.36), alcohol use (AOR = 4.20; 95% CI: 1.60–11.02), and frequent refined carbohydrate intake between meal (AOR = 2.56; 95% CI: 1.19–5.49).\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConclusion:\u003c/strong\u003e Gingivitis is common in Harar Town and is strongly associated with modifiable factors. Targeted oral health education and behavioral interventions are recommended.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Magnitude and Associated Factors of Oral Gingivitis Among Patients Attending Public and Private Dental Clinics in Harar Town, Eastern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-07-18 04:47:16","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6908358/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2025-07-29T11:56:34+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2025-07-29T01:13:57+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2025-07-29T01:13:32+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"BMC Oral Health","date":"2025-06-16T20:06:06+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"bmc-oral-health","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"ohea","sideBox":"Learn more about [BMC Oral Health](http://bmcoralhealth.biomedcentral.com/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"https://www.editorialmanager.com/ohea/default.aspx","title":"BMC Oral Health","twitterHandle":"BMC_series","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"BMC Series","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"7dd3cdc3-bf9c-46b6-acd1-215d9e67cce3","owner":[],"postedDate":"July 18th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-07T08:38:21+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-07-18 04:47:16","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-6908358","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-6908358","identity":"rs-6908358","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}