Oral health and oral health behavior in young adults with caries disease

Abstract

Objective The aim of this study was to describe and analyze oral health, oral health behaviors, and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in relation to the level of caries disease among caries-active young adults. Material and methods This study presents data from a sample of young adults (n = 135) with active caries disease who were enrolled in a clinical, randomized controlled trial. The independent variables of sociodemographics, oral health (gingivitis, plaque), oral health behaviors (such as toothbrushing, dental attendance, sugar-containing sweets and drinks), dental anxiety, self-rated oral health, and OHRQoL were collected. Multinomial logistic regression was used to simultaneously evaluate the associations between the independent variables and caries severity. Results Multinominal logistic regression showed that poor OHRQoL and gingivitis were associated with caries severity in a gradient fashion in accordance with caries disease activity. Also, irregular dental care and frequent consumption of sugary soda were significantly associated with very high caries severity. Conclusions The risk factors related to caries severity among young adults were poor OHRQoL, gingivitis, consumption of sugary soda and irregular dental care attendance, indicating the need for a combination of different interventions specifically health behavior change. Furthermore, these findings may contribute to identifying high caries-risk individuals.

The Relationship between Dental Fear and Anxiety, General Anxiety/Fear, Sensory Over-Responsivity, and Oral Health Behaviors and Outcomes: A Conceptual Model

“…In children, irregular dental attendance was associated with DMFT [ 7 , 122 , 206 ] and poor OHRQoL [ 207 ]. In 13 studies of adults, irregular dental attendance was associated with poor oral health (e.g., DMFT and self-report of poor oral health) [ 8 , 56 , 66 , 96 , 100 , 125 , 135 , 160 , 167 , 169 , 171 , 208 , 209 ]. One study reported no significant association between dental attendance and change in OHRQoL over a 12-month period in adults [ 210 ].…”

Oral health and mental health in healthy adults, a topic of primary prevention and health care, empirical results from two online studies

“…So far, the focus has been on the investigation of vulnerable target groups who already suffer from mental disorders such as depressive disorders or eating disorders (see Introduction). However, more recent studies conducted in samples of young healthy adults in several countries point to an interesting paradox of better subjective oral health in the elderly compared with young or middle-aged adults (Hagman et al, 2021 ). Given the prominence and increasing prevalence of depression and eating disorders in the general population, particularly in the population of young adults, the present studies thought to answer whether oral health impairments and mental health conditions, predominantly related to depressive symptoms and symptoms related to eating disorders are already linked in healthy young adults without clinical diagnosis of depression or eating disorders and without full blown oral diseases such as tooth loss, caries or periodontitis.…”

BDJ Open 2021 - our most successful year to date

“…In 2021 alone, there were eight papers published on the experience of patients, 7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14 again from a wide geographical reach including Lima, 11 Malaysia 7 and India. 13 Of these eight, three papers focused on the health and oral health of older adults.…”