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. 2023 Nov 21;23(1):900.
doi: 10.1186/s12903-023-03598-4.

Gender differences in oral health among prisoners: a cross-sectional study from Taiwan

Yu-Pei Yang #  1   2 , Ho-Tsung Hsin #  3   4 , Bing-Long Wang  5 , Yen-Chun Wang  6 , Pi-Ching Yu  3 , Shi-Hao Huang  7   8 , Ren-Jei Chung  8 , Yao-Ching Huang  9   10   11 , Tao-Hsin Tung  12
Affiliations

Gender differences in oral health among prisoners: a cross-sectional study from Taiwan

Yu-Pei Yang et al. BMC Oral Health. .

Abstract

Background: The prevalence of oral diseases among Taiwanese prisoners has rarely been investigated. This study aimed to estimate the gender-specific prevalence of oral disease in a sample of Taiwanese prisoners.

Methods: We included 83,048 participants from the National Health Insurance (NHI) Program. Outcomes were measured using the clinical version of the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9-CM). For prevalence, we provide absolute values and percentages. We also performed a χ2 test to assess sex and age group differences in the percentage of disease in the oral cavity, salivary glands, and jaw.

Results: The prevalence rate of oral diseases was 25.90%, which was higher than that of the general population. The prevalence of oral diseases in female prisoners was higher than that in male prisoners (p < 0.001), and the prevalence of oral diseases in prisoners aged ≤ 40 was higher than that of prisoners aged > 40. Among all cases of diagnosed oral diseases, the top three diseases were dental hard tissue diseases (13.28%), other cellulitis and abscesses (9.79%), and pruritus and related conditions (2.88%), respectively. The prevalence of various oral diseases in female prisoners was significantly higher than that in male prisoners.

Conclusion: Oral disease is common among Taiwanese prisoners. Female prisoners had a higher prevalence of oral, salivary gland, and jaw diseases than male prisoners. Therefore, early prevention and appropriate treatment are required and also a need for gender-specific oral disease products given the differences in the prevalence of oral disease among male and female prisoners.

Keywords: Age difference; Oral Disease; Sex difference; Taiwan prison.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The flowchart of the study sample selection
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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