BackgroundIn many European countries including Germany, migrants utilize preventive services less frequently than the majority population. This is also true for the utilization of dental checkups. Little is known about which demographic, social, behavioral, and health-related factors influence the decision of migrants to seek preventive dental health care and how these factors differ from those in non-migrants. The aim of the present study was to examine the role of these factors among migrants and non-migrants residing in Germany.MethodsData from cross-sectional national health surveys are used, providing information on preventive dental health behavior from n = 41,220 individuals, of which 15.0% are migrants. Andersen’s Behavioral Model of Health Services Use is the conceptual framework of the investigation. Multiple logistic regression models were applied to examine the role of different predisposing and enabling factors. Interaction terms were included in order to examine whether determinants differ between migrants and non-migrants. Average marginal effects (AMEs) are reported in addition to odds ratios (ORs) as measures of effect size which are robust against bias arising from unobserved heterogeneity.ResultsMigrants are at an about 36% lower chance of utilizing regular dental checkups than non-migrants [OR = 0.64 (95% confidence interval, 95% CI: 0.61, 0.68); AME = −0.081 (95% CI = −0.093, −0.069)]. Differences are partly explained by the influence of demographic, social, behavioral, and health-related factors [adjusted OR = 0.69 (95% CI: 0.64, 0.73); AME = −0.065 (95% CI = −0.076, −0.053)]. Younger age, being male, lower socioeconomic status, a non-statutory health insurance, not living in a relationship, living in the Western part of Germany and in an urban setting, and poor limited social support were associated with a lower chance of utilizing regular dental checkups. Interaction effects could be observed for age and for the type of health insurance.DiscussionThe study identifies different enabling and predisposing factors that are relevant for the utilization of dental checkups among the population in Germany, some of which differ between migrants and non-migrants. Differences are particularly pronounced for younger ages. This differs from findings on other preventive services where older migrants tend to be more disadvantaged. Additional explanatory factors such as barriers that migrants experience in the dental health care system need to be considered in order to implement patient-oriented services and to reduce disparities in access to dental prevention.

BackgroundMigrants in many European countries including Germany tend to utilize preventive measures less frequently than the majority population. Little is known about the dental health of migrants as well as about their oral health behaviour, particularly in the adult population. The aim of this study was to examine differences in the uptake of annual dental check-ups in adult migrants and non-migrants in Germany.MethodsWe used data from the cross-sectional survey ‘German Health Update 2010’ conducted by the Robert Koch Institute (n = 22,050). Data from 21,741 German-speaking respondents with information on the use of dental check-ups was available, of which 3404 (15.7%) were migrants. Multiple logistic regression models were applied to adjust for demographic and socioeconomic confounders, including the place of residence as well as type of health insurance.ResultsMigrants were generally younger, had a lower socioeconomic status and showed a lower utilization of dental check-ups. The unadjusted odds ratio (OR) for utilization was 0.67 (95%-CI = 0.61–0.73). After adjusting for demographic and socioeconomic confounders the chance only increased slightly (adjusted OR = 0.71; 95%-CI = 0.65–0.77).ConclusionsThe analysis shows that migration status is associated with a reduced chance of attending dental check-ups, independently of demographic and socioeconomic factors. The influence of other factors, such as type of health insurance and place of residence had also no influence on the association. Migrants are exposed to different barriers in the health care system, comprising the patient, provider and system level. Further studies need to examine the relevant barriers for the uptake of preventive dental services in order to devise appropriate migrant- sensitive measures of dental prevention.