Arcury Thomas A, Chen Haiying, Savoca Margaret R, Anderson Andrea M, Leng Xiaoyan, Bell Ronny A, Quandt Sara A
Department of Family and Community Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine, NC, USA.
J Appl Gerontol. 2013 Apr;32(3):302-23. doi: 10.1177/0733464811420428. Epub 2011 Sep 12.
This analysis examines the associations of oral health with social integration among ethnically diverse (African American, American Indian, White) rural older adults. Data are from a cross-sectional survey of 635 randomly selected community-dwelling adults aged 60+. Measures include self-rated oral health, number of teeth, number of oral health problems, social engagement, and social network size. Minority elders have poorer oral health than do White older adults. Most rural elders have substantial social engagement and social networks. Better oral health (greater number of teeth) is directly associated with social engagement, whereas the relationship of oral health to social network size is complex. The association of oral health with social engagement does not differ by ethnicity. Poorer oral health is associated with less social integration among African American, American Indian, and White elders. More research on the ways oral health affects the lives of older adults is warranted.
本分析探讨了不同种族（非裔美国人、美国印第安人、白人）的农村老年人的口腔健康与社会融合之间的关联。数据来自对635名随机抽取的60岁及以上社区居住成年人的横断面调查。测量指标包括自评口腔健康状况、牙齿数量、口腔健康问题数量、社会参与度和社交网络规模。少数族裔老年人的口腔健康状况比白人老年人差。大多数农村老年人有大量的社会参与和社交网络。较好的口腔健康（牙齿数量较多）与社会参与度直接相关，而口腔健康与社交网络规模之间的关系则较为复杂。口腔健康与社会参与度之间的关联在不同种族间并无差异。较差的口腔健康状况与非裔美国人、美国印第安人和白人老年人的社会融合程度较低有关。有必要对口腔健康影响老年人生活的方式进行更多研究。
