Aim: The objective of this study was to establish the prevalence of dentine hypersensitivity (DH) in Chinese urban adults and the possible effects of smoking on DH.
Materials and methods: A total of 2640 subjects were distributed equally in 12 communities in Chengdu and Xian City, respectively, and of all age groups (10 years for an age group) including the same number of male and female subjects in each community. Each subject completed a structured interview and the subjects who reported hypersensitivity symptoms were examined with cold air from a dental triple syringe in order to confirm the diagnosis of DH. Attachment loss and gingival recession of sensitive teeth were measured by a Williams periodontal probe.
Results: The diagnosis of DH established following a clinical assessment yielded an overall prevalence of 25.5%. The 50-59-year-old age group had the greatest number of subjects with DH (p<0.05). 78.6% and 31.4% of sensitive teeth were associated with attachment loss and gingival loss, respectively. Subjects who smoked did not have more sensitive teeth on average than subjects who did not smoke (p>0.05).
Conclusions: The prevalence of DH in a selected community population was 25.5%.