Al-quran dan kualiti hidup

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
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Good oral health of soldiers would decrease the number of urgent dental interventions and absences from training and the battlefield and would improve the security of the whole formation. Poor dental health may have severe oral health impact and hence can affect the performance of personnel. It may impose on the dental delivery system in providing oral health care by increasing the work burden of the personnel on duty in the Armed Forces dental services and increase the military budget. In the Armed Forces, this can also lead to personnel being evacuated from the operational area due to unbearable dental pain (Zainal Abidin, 1986). This evacuation will not only affect the morale of his colleagues but also impose risks to the evacuating helper and possibly affects the outcome of the battle.
Gordon et al (1986) reported that for the Israeli army 20-40 year aged group, to complete all dental treatment, needs 10.5 hours per soldier and one hour for dental hygiene therapy. This involves restorative, endodontic, oral surgical, periodontal and prosthetic treatment. Richardson et al (1996) in his study on dental status of a cohort of Royal Air Force recruits in 1988 found that the recruits required twice as many restorations in their first year in the service to render them dentally fit as were required in any subsequent year to maintain fitness, this work needed 58 minutes of dental officers’ time in their first year and 43 minutes per year thereafter. Chisick et al (2000) found that the estimated treatment costs of USD 1.9 billion for active duty (n=1,699,662) and USD 203 million for recruit (n=202,144) U.S. military personnel. Periodontal disease accounts for the greatest proportion (47%) of active duty treatment cost and oral surgery account for the greatest proportion (32%) of recruit treatment costs. The cost for restoring U.S service members to optimal oral health is substantial.
Numerous studies have been undertaken to assess the oral health status and treatment needs among the Armed Forces personnel in Malaysia. In a study by Zainal Abidin (1988), a high level of oral diseases among 318 personnel in infantry battalion was reported. He found that 98% had experienced caries and 95.5% had periodontal diseases. Twenty–nine percent required extraction of at least one tooth.
Senan (1989) found that 22.6% out of 495 soldiers in Majidee camp suffered from some form of periodontal problem. Faki (1989) undertook a study in a military camp in Terendak, to look into the dental treatment needs of the 17th Royal Malay Regiment before they were sent to Somalia for a military mission. He found that only 34% personnel did not require any form of dental treatment. Of those requiring treatment, 66% needed filling, 48% needed extraction and 66% needed scaling. In a study by Zainal Abidin (1992), among 7188 military personnel, it was found that 33.5% required emergency treatment, 7 % required denture, and 50 % required routine treatment (scaling and filling). Only 10.2% did not need any treatment. Jasmin (1995) examined 188 personnel in air force base in Kuantan and found a high level of unmet treatment need. 95.7% had periodontal diseases of which 89.4% required scaling, although none of them required root planning and gum surgery.
A study to compare the prevalence of dental caries, periodontal disease and the need for denture between a group of personnel who had received comprehensive dental treatment under active dental support programme (ADS) and another group who was not exposed to the above programme was undertaken by Haron (1995). She found that the DMFX of the ADS group was 6 as compare to 8 for non ADS group. She also reported that 64% of the personnel under ADS programme had periodontal diseases as compared to 81 % of the non ADS group.
Therefore, it can be concluded that oral health status among Malaysian Armed Forces personnel are generally poor with high levels of dental caries and periodontal diseases.
Satisfactory oral health has been defined as a masticatory system that is functionally adequate, aesthetically pleasing to the individual, and free from pain, discomfort and diseases (Dawson & Smales, 1994). Poor oral status can impose severe oral health impact to the individual.
Zainal Abidin (1988) found that the average number of emergency treatment was 12.7% cases per 1000 men per month among 318 military personnel in an infantry battalion in Malaysia. Almost fifty percent of the subject had pain which was due to dental caries and the prevalence from periodontal related pain was 28.9%. Halina in 1995 reported that there were a significant number of personnel having experienced pain and discomfort in the mouth in the previous two years. She found that prevalence of pain and discomfort, even among those who received ADS was 20.9% as compared to 45.9% for the non- ADS group. She also found that the ADS group had mean days of work loss of 0.3 days and sleep disturbance for 0.4 nights as compared to non ADS were 0.7 days and 1.7 night respectively in the last two years. Haron (1991) found 20 cases of acute dental pain during his 3 month tour of duty on board the ship, KD Mahawangsa to New Zealand.
This study is undertaken to assess the oral health status and impacts among first year cadets in the National Defence University Malaysia (UPNM) which is a military university. Cadets represent future military officers and leaders. As leaders, they serve as role model to their staff including having good oral health.
No previous study has been done in this population and hence it will provide baseline data on the oral health status of first year cadets in UPNM and its oral health impacts. The data obtained can assist in the planning of human capital to ensure that the cadets are dentally fit and are in combat readiness.