Age and sex differences in the association of dental visits with inadequate oral health and multimorbidity: Findings from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA)

Luis Limo^{1

2}, Kathryn Nicholson², Saverio Stranges^{2

3

4

5

6}, Noha A Gomaa^{7

8

9}

Affiliations

¹ Divisions of Dental Public Health and Oral Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, #0071-1511 Richmond St. Dental Sciences Building, London, ON, ON, N6A 3K7, Canada.
² Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
³ Department of Family Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
⁴ Department of Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
⁵ Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy.
⁶ London Health Sciences Centre, London, ON, Canada.
⁷ Divisions of Dental Public Health and Oral Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, #0071-1511 Richmond St. Dental Sciences Building, London, ON, ON, N6A 3K7, Canada. ngomaa@uwo.ca.
⁸ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada. ngomaa@uwo.ca.
⁹ London Health Sciences Centre, London, ON, Canada. ngomaa@uwo.ca.

PMID: 39455960
PMCID: PMC11515213
DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-20412-0

Age and sex differences in the association of dental visits with inadequate oral health and multimorbidity: Findings from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA)

Luis Limo et al. BMC Public Health. 2024.

. 2024 Oct 25;24(1):2968.

doi: 10.1186/s12889-024-20412-0.

Authors

Luis Limo^{1

2}, Kathryn Nicholson², Saverio Stranges^{2

3

4

5

6}, Noha A Gomaa^{7

8

9}

Affiliations

¹ Divisions of Dental Public Health and Oral Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, #0071-1511 Richmond St. Dental Sciences Building, London, ON, ON, N6A 3K7, Canada.
² Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
³ Department of Family Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
⁴ Department of Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
⁵ Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy.
⁶ London Health Sciences Centre, London, ON, Canada.
⁷ Divisions of Dental Public Health and Oral Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, #0071-1511 Richmond St. Dental Sciences Building, London, ON, ON, N6A 3K7, Canada. ngomaa@uwo.ca.
⁸ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada. ngomaa@uwo.ca.
⁹ London Health Sciences Centre, London, ON, Canada. ngomaa@uwo.ca.

PMID: 39455960
PMCID: PMC11515213
DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-20412-0

Abstract

Background: Dental attendance is important for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of oral diseases. In this study, we aimed to assess the extent of the association between dental visits, inadequate oral health, and multimorbidity (MM), and whether this association differs by age and sex.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the first follow-up wave (2018) of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA). Poor self-reported oral health (SROH), oral health problems, and edentulism were used to indicate inadequate oral health. MM was defined as having 2 or more chronic conditions out of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, diabetes, and mental illnesses. Dental visiting was determined as the number of visits to a dental professional within the past 12 months. Covariates included socioeconomic, behavioural factors, and the availability of dental insurance. We constructed multivariable Poisson and logistic regression models with interactions terms and estimated the relative excess risk due to interaction prevalence ratio (RERIPR) to assess the effect measure modification of age and sex on the associations of interest. We conducted sensitivity analyses and estimated E-values for unmeasured confounding.

Results: In this sample (n = 44,815), dental visiting was inversely associated with inadequate oral health and MM in adjusted models, reducing the odds/prevalence of poor SROH (OR 0.41, 95% CI 0.34, 0.51), oral health problems (PR 0.89, 95% CI 0.79, 0.94), edentulism (OR 0.10, 95% CI 0.06, 0.15), and MM (PR 0.86, 95% CI 0.79, 0.92). These associations were stronger in older age and females.

Conclusion: Dental visiting may contribute to better oral health and reduced chronic diseases in the middle-aged and older population. Our findings suggest the need for age and sex-specific targeted interventions to optimize oral and overall health.

Keywords: Access to dental care; Aging; CLSA; Canada; Chronic disease; Dental care; Multimorbidity; Non-communicable diseases; Oral health; Oral health inequalities.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

References

1. Weyant RJ, Watt RG. A call for action to improve US oral health care. J Am Dent Association. 2020;151:73–5. 10.1016/j.adaj.2019.12.003. - PubMed
1. Donaldson AN, Everitt B, Newton T, Steele J, Sherriff M, Bower E. The effects of Social Class and Dental attendance on oral health. J Dent Res. 2008;87:60–4. 10.1177/154405910808700110. - PubMed
1. Meyerhoefer CD, Pepper JV, Manski RJ, Moeller JF. Dental Care Use, Edentulism, and systemic health among older adults. J Dent Res. 2021;100:1468–74. 10.1177/00220345211019018. - PMC - PubMed
1. Crocombe LA, Broadbent JM, Thomson WM, Brennan DS, Poulton R. Impact of dental visiting trajectory patterns on clinical oral health and oral health-related quality of life. J Public Health Dent. 2012;72:36–44. 10.1111/j.1752-7325.2011.00281.x. - PubMed
1. Moeller J, Singhal S, Al-Dajani M, Gomaa N, Quiñonez C. Assessing the relationship between dental appearance and the potential for discrimination in Ontario, Canada. SSM Popul Health. 2015;1:26–31. 10.1016/j.ssmph.2015.11.001. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

Actions

MeSH terms

Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions
Actions

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources
- BioMed Central
- PubMed Central
Medical
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- MedlinePlus Health Information
Research Materials
- NCI CPTC Antibody Characterization Program
Miscellaneous
- NCI CPTAC Assay Portal

Save citation to file

Email citation

Add to Collections

Add to My Bibliography

Your saved search

Create a file for external citation management software

Your RSS Feed

Age and sex differences in the association of dental visits with inadequate oral health and multimorbidity: Findings from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA)

Affiliations

Age and sex differences in the association of dental visits with inadequate oral health and multimorbidity: Findings from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA)

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

References

Publication types

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources

Medical

Research Materials

Miscellaneous