Graduate School of Public Health, Ajou University, Suwon, Korea.
Institute on Aging, Ajou University Medical Center, Suwon, Korea.
Geriatr Gerontol Int. 2017 Nov;17(11):1936-1942. doi: 10.1111/ggi.12997. Epub 2017 Feb 11.
Although older adults have high dental care needs as a result of prevalent oral health problems, they have high unmet needs. The purpose of the present study was to examine factors associated with unmet dental care needs among older adults living in the community.
This study analyzed 1419 adults aged 65 years and older who participated in both the health interview survey and oral examination of the Fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey carried out in 2010. Predisposing (age, sex, education, marital status), enabling (place of residence, work status, income, health insurance) and need (self-rated oral health, difficulty chewing, toothache, number of teeth, dental caries, periodontal disease) factors associated with self-perceived unmet dental care needs were analyzed through multiple logistic regression analysis.
Unmet dental care needs accounted for 27.9% in older adults. Age, income, difficulty chewing and the presence of permanent tooth caries were significantly associated with unmet dental care needs, adjusting for covariates. Compared with those aged 75 years and older, the 65-69 years age group showed 1.86-fold higher odds of unmet dental care needs. Lower household income was associated with a higher likelihood of not receiving dental care when required. Unmet dental care needs were significantly higher among those with chewing difficulty (OR 2.14, 95% CI 1.55, 2.95) and permanent tooth caries (OR 1.86, 95% CI 1.28-2.70).
Unmet dental care needs are prevalent in older people who are socioeconomically disadvantaged and vulnerable in oral health. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 1936-1942.
尽管老年人由于普遍存在的口腔健康问题而有较高的口腔保健需求，但他们的需求仍未得到满足。本研究的目的是调查社区中老年人未满足的口腔保健需求的相关因素。
本研究分析了 2010 年参加第五次韩国国家健康和营养检查调查的 1419 名 65 岁及以上的成年人，该调查包括健康访谈调查和口腔检查。通过多因素逻辑回归分析，分析了与自我感知未满足的口腔保健需求相关的倾向因素（年龄、性别、教育、婚姻状况）、促成因素（居住地、工作状况、收入、医疗保险）和需要因素（自我评估的口腔健康、咀嚼困难、牙痛、牙齿数量、龋齿、牙周病）。
老年人未满足的口腔保健需求占 27.9%。在调整了协变量后，年龄、收入、咀嚼困难和永久性龋齿的存在与未满足的口腔保健需求显著相关。与 75 岁及以上的老年人相比，65-69 岁年龄组未满足口腔保健需求的可能性高出 1.86 倍。较低的家庭收入与需要时未获得口腔保健的可能性较高有关。咀嚼困难者（OR 2.14，95%CI 1.55，2.95）和有永久性龋齿者（OR 1.86，95%CI 1.28，2.70）未满足口腔保健需求的可能性显著更高。
在社会经济处于不利地位和口腔健康脆弱的老年人中，未满足的口腔保健需求普遍存在。老年医学与老年病学杂志 2017；17：1936-1942。
