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Social inequalities in tooth loss: A multinational comparison
Hawazin W Elani1, Sam Harper2, William Murray Thomson3
1Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA.
Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology
|February 11, 2017
Summary
Education-based inequalities in tooth loss vary significantly across high-income nations. The USA had the widest disparities in edentulism, while Chile showed the largest gradient for mean teeth present.
Area of Science:
- Oral health epidemiology
- Health disparities research
- Socioeconomic determinants of health
Background:
- Tooth loss is a significant oral health outcome.
- Socioeconomic position, particularly education, influences health.
- Cross-national comparisons are crucial for understanding health inequalities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare education-based inequalities in tooth loss across Australia, Canada, Chile, New Zealand, and the United States.
- To examine variations in edentulism prevalence and mean number of teeth present.
- To quantify absolute and relative inequalities in tooth loss by educational attainment.
Main Methods:
- Utilized nationally representative health surveys from five countries.
- Assessed edentulism (complete tooth loss), proportion with <21 teeth, and mean teeth present.
- Employed random-effects meta-analysis to synthesize inequality estimates based on education.
Main Results:
- The USA exhibited the greatest absolute and relative inequalities in edentulism prevalence.
- Chile showed the largest social inequality gradient for the mean number of teeth present.
- Australia had the smallest absolute and relative inequality gap for the proportion of individuals with <21 teeth.
Conclusions:
- Significant variation exists in the magnitude of tooth loss inequalities across the studied countries.
- Educational attainment is a key factor associated with disparities in oral health outcomes.
- Findings highlight the need for tailored public health interventions to address oral health inequalities.
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