Dental Care Usage Rates Higher Among Women

Dental Care Usage Rates Higher Among Women; Race, Education, Income and Age Also Studied

CHICAGO -- Dental care utilization rates are higher among women, more whites see their dentist than blacks and usage rates increase with income and educational level, according to an article appearing in the April 1999 issue of The Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA).

In the JADA article, data from a 1997 American Dental Association (ADA)/Gallup national telephone survey, show an almost equal distribution of non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black adult populations indicating they had visited a dentist within the past year, 74.7 percent and 71.6 percent, respectively. However, other data cited in the article show dental visits by non-Hispanic whites ranged from 11.5 percent to 18.5 percent higher, compared with non-Hispanic blacks.

The authors, L. Jackson Brown, D.D.S., Ph.D., associate executive director, American Dental Association (ADA), ADA Health Policy Resources Center, and Vickie Lazar, M.A., M.S., manager, Health Policy Analysis, ADA Health Policy Resources Center, report on and compare dental care utilization rates provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Center for Health Statistics, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research and the ADA.

In this article, utilization refers to the percentage of the population who accessed dental services over a specified period, and the majority of data we provide represent people who are 25 years of age or older, they said.

Dental Visits By Sex

The ADA/Gallup survey of 1,002 individuals reveals that 76.4 percent of women aged 25 or older recorded dental visits in the past year compared with 74.5 percent of men in the same age group. However, the National Center for Health Statistics' Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for the period 1988-1994 recorded fewer annual visits, 66.6 percent of women aged 25 or older compared with 59.7 percent of men.

Dental Visits By Income

The 1997 ADA Gallup Survey shows that among participants 25 years or older, 59 percent with household income between $10,000 and $19,999 indicated they had visited a dentist within the past year compared with 84.9 percent of participants with annual household incomes of $50,000 or more. Other data cited in the article reveal similar findings, with differing percentage rates. -more- Dental usage page 3

Dental Visits By Education

Based on the 1997 ADA/Gallup survey, 60.7 percent of participants 25 years or older, with less than 12 years of education, indicated they had visited a dentist within the past year. This compares with 70.3 percent for participants who had 12 years or more of education within the same age group. The findings also are consistent with other data in the article, but at differing percentage rates.

Dental Visits By Age

In the 1997 ADA/Gallup study, dental care utilization rates decreased as participants' age increased. A little over 82 percent of 25- to 34-year-olds indicated they had visited a dentist within the past year. In comparison, the survey shows that 68.5 percent of participants who were 65 years of age or older indicated they had visited a dentist in the past year. Similar results were echoed by other data included in the article, with differing percentage rates.

"Although the available data vary," lead-author Dr. Brown said, "they suggest that more Americans were visiting a dentist in 1997 than 1983 and that dental care utilization is increasing overall, as well as across educational, racial and economic lines."

For more information about oral health care, go to the ADA's website: http://www.ada.org.

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