The purpose of this study was to evaluate oral health status, behavioral risk indicators, and the impact of smoking on oral health among Lithuanian adolescents. This representative cross-sectional study was conducted among 15-year-old Lithuanian adolescents. The method of multistage cluster sampling was used. A total of 1127 adolescents met the inclusion criteria. Two originally created self-reported questionnaires were used in this study. Dental caries, periodontal status, and oral hygiene status were evaluated by four trained researchers. A p-value ≤ 0.05 was set to indicate statistically significant differences. Statistical analysis included Mann-Whitney, Kruskal-Wallis, and Spearman correlation tests. Out of all the participants, 9.6% self-reported being a current tobacco smoker. The mean PI value was 1.14 ± 0.69 among all the participants. Currently smoking adolescents had more active caries lesions (D-S) than those who did not smoke (13.2 ± 16.4 vs. 9.8 ± 10.7, p = 0.023). Considering periodontal status, non-smoking adolescents had significantly lower mean PSR index scores than current smokers (0.52 ± 0.51 vs. 0.61 ± 0.50, p = 0.0298). Tobacco smoking and the consumption of energy drinks were significantly associated (OR = 3.74, 95% CI 2.66-5.26, p < 0.001) among participants. Currently smoking adolescents tended to have improper dietary habits, especially a higher consumption of energy drinks; thus, they were more likely to have active dental caries lesions, as well as poorer periodontal status, than their non-smoking peers.
Keywords: adolescent; dental caries; oral health; periodontal status; smoking.