Tobacco cessation, oral pain, and psychological distress in Bangladeshi women

This study reports the experience of oral pain and psychological distress following tobacco cessation in Bangladeshi women. A cross-sectional survey was carried out in which telephone interviews were conducted in the Sylheti language by two female Bangladeshi researchers using structured questionnaires. Study participants were 58 Bangladeshi women, aged 22-60 years, who had recently given up chewing paan-with-tobacco. The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) was used to measure psychological distress. A questionnaire on pain description, location, duration, onset, and intensity also was administered. Logistic regression analysis was carried out to explore the relationships between psychological distress and age, chewing characteristics, and the oral pain experience. The response rate was 100%. Of the sample, 22% reported having pain for 2 days and 28% for at least 1 week, 65% reported that the pain started by itself, 69% reported the intensity as mild or discomforting, and 52% experienced psychological distress. Significant predictors for high psychological distress were number of daily paan (odds ratio, OR=1.13), current tooth problem (OR=4.60), pounding pain (OR=6.50), pain onset (OR=3.21), and pain intensity (OR= 5.57). The prevalence of oral pain reported for Bangladeshi women following an attempt at chewing tobacco cessation is high. Characteristics of this outcome suggest the pain is of dental origin. These characteristics are correlated to psychological distress. The success of chewing tobacco cessation initiatives in the population may be influenced by oral pain and psychological distress. Further research is needed to explore the etiological factors associated with oral pain in this group of tobacco users.