Association between self-reported and clinical oral health status in Belarusian adults

The aims of the present study were to determine characteristics of self-perception of oral health, and to investigate associations between self-reported status and clinical oral health status among Belarusian adults.

A cross-sectional study, including a questionnaire survey and oral health examination, was conducted among 281 dental patients.

Of the participants, 74% were women; the mean ages of female and male participants were 35.9 ± 12.3 and 28.0 ± 10.3 years (P < 0.001), respectively. More than half of the participants (58%) described their oral health as negative. The number of decayed teeth (P < 0.001), missing teeth (P < 0.001), and teeth with bleeding on probing (P < 0.01) and deep periodontal pockets (P < 0.001) were significantly higher among participants who described their oral health as negative compared to their counterparts. Participants with better agreement between self-reported and clinical number of teeth had significantly lower numbers of decayed and missing teeth (P < 0.01). There was a significant relationship between participants' self-reported periodontal status and number of teeth with bleeding on probing and deep periodontal pockets (P < 0.05).

Self-perceived oral health was significantly associated with clinical oral health status in this study. Self-reporting methods could be useful for population-based oral health surveys in Belarus.