The University of Texas at Austin, USA
The University of Texas at Austin, USA.
J Aging Health. 2014 Sep;26(6):1047-59. doi: 10.1177/0898264314538663. Epub 2014 Jun 11.
The study explored predictors of dental care utilization and unmet dental needs in older Korean Americans, considering predisposing, enabling (dental insurance, acculturation, and family network), and need (self-rated oral health) variables.
Multivariate regression models were used to evaluate the data from 209 Korean Americans (aged ≥ 60) surveyed in Central Texas.
Participants with strong family networks and fair/poor self-ratings of oral health reported higher numbers of dental visits in the past year. The likelihood of having an unmet dental need increased when participants had less education, a shorter stay in the United States, no dental insurance coverage, lower levels of acculturation, more limited family networks, fair/poor self-ratings of oral health, and fewer numbers of dental visits.
Our findings underscore the vulnerability of individuals who are culturally and linguistically isolated and lack family resources, and they highlight the importance of incorporating social and cultural factors in intervention efforts.
本研究探讨了影响老年韩裔美国人牙科保健利用和未满足牙科需求的因素，考虑了倾向因素（如文化程度、社会支持、社会网络等）、促进因素（如医疗保险、文化适应、家庭网络等）和需求因素（如自我报告的口腔健康状况等）。
采用多变量回归模型对在得克萨斯州中部接受调查的 209 名韩裔美国人（年龄≥60 岁）的数据进行了分析。
研究结果表明，拥有强大家庭网络和自我报告口腔健康状况一般/较差的参与者在过去一年中接受了更多的牙科就诊。参与者的受教育程度较低、留美时间较短、没有医疗保险、文化适应程度较低、家庭网络较有限、自我报告口腔健康状况一般/较差、接受牙科就诊的次数较少时，其未满足牙科需求的可能性增加。
本研究结果强调了那些在文化和语言上受到孤立且缺乏家庭资源的个体的脆弱性，同时也强调了在干预措施中纳入社会和文化因素的重要性。
