Habibovic Jasmin, Demirovic Kenan, Habibovic Edina, Durek Jasmina Mlaco, Tiro Alisa
Public Health Institution Živinice, 75270 Živinice, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Private Practice for Dentofacial Orthopedics and Orthodontics "Demirović", Bjelave 70, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Healthcare (Basel). 2025 Jun 5;13(11):1347. doi: 10.3390/healthcare13111347.
The objective of this investigation was to assess the oral health (OH) of Bosnia and Herzegovinian adolescents in relation to differences and socioeconomic status (SES).
This cross-sectional study included 306 school children from high schools located in the Tuzla Canton (Bosnia and Herzegovina). The sample consisted of 183 females and 123 males between 15 and 18 years old (mean of 16.82 years old). The study was conducted between December 2019 and March 2020, via an Annex 8 questionnaire from the World Health Organization (WHO), which collected information on OH behaviours, self-perceptions of oral health and dietary factors responsible for the OH of each subject. SES was categorized using five variables (occupation, education, income, place of residence and number of family members). Cross-tabulations were evaluated according to sex and socioeconomic status (SES) via the chi-square test.
Over 40% of the participants consumed sweets, cakes and biscuits on daily basis, whereas 41.5% of the participants visited a dentist only in the case of pain. The consumption of sweets ( = 0.024) and cakes and biscuits ( = 0.011) on a daily basis was significantly greater in female adolescents than in male adolescents. Compared with male adolescents, female adolescents reported occasional toothaches more frequently ( = 0.001) and were more dissatisfied with their dental appearance ( = 0.008) but presented a greater frequency of flossing ( = 0.001) and toothbrushing (3-5 times a day) ( = 0.0001). There was no association between the different levels (below average, average, above average) of SES and factors affecting OH status of adolescents.
The study revealed significant sex differences in several factors affecting OH status and revealed no relationship between SES and OH behaviours or between perceptions and risk factors affecting OH in 15-18-year-old adolescents. Data obtained from this study might help in the creation of new OH prevention programs aimed at improving the OH status of adolescents in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
本调查的目的是评估波斯尼亚和黑塞哥维那青少年的口腔健康（OH）与差异及社会经济地位（SES）之间的关系。
这项横断面研究纳入了来自图兹拉州（波斯尼亚和黑塞哥维那）高中的306名学童。样本包括183名女性和123名男性，年龄在15至18岁之间（平均年龄16.82岁）。该研究于2019年12月至2020年3月期间进行，通过世界卫生组织（WHO）的附件8问卷收集有关OH行为、口腔健康自我认知以及影响每个受试者OH的饮食因素的信息。SES使用五个变量（职业、教育、收入、居住地点和家庭成员数量）进行分类。通过卡方检验根据性别和社会经济地位（SES）对交叉表进行评估。
超过40%的参与者每天食用糖果、蛋糕和饼干，而41.5%的参与者仅在疼痛时才去看牙医。女性青少年每天食用糖果（P = 0.024）和蛋糕及饼干（P = 0.011）的比例显著高于男性青少年。与男性青少年相比，女性青少年报告偶尔牙痛的频率更高（P = 0.001），对牙齿外观更不满意（P = 0.008），但使用牙线的频率更高（P = 0.001）且刷牙（每天3 - 5次）的频率更高（P = 0.0001）。SES的不同水平（低于平均水平、平均水平、高于平均水平）与影响青少年OH状况的因素之间没有关联。
该研究揭示了影响OH状况的几个因素中存在显著的性别差异，并且揭示了15 - 18岁青少年的SES与OH行为之间、认知与影响OH的风险因素之间没有关系。从本研究中获得的数据可能有助于制定新的OH预防计划，旨在改善波斯尼亚和黑塞哥维那青少年的OH状况。
