Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Jan 22;25(1):280.
doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-21540-x.

Factors associated with dental care utilization among Iranian adult populations based on Anderson model

Ashkan Negintaji Zardak  1 , Mostafa Amini-Rarani  2 , Ibrahim Abdollahpour  3 , Faezeh Eslamipour  4 , Bahareh Tahani  5
Affiliations

Factors associated with dental care utilization among Iranian adult populations based on Anderson model

Ashkan Negintaji Zardak et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: The utilization of dental care is affected by different factors. Despite the importance of dental care, there are significant disparities in its utilization among various population groups. The aim of this study was to identify the main factors of dental care utilization and the influences of the Health Transformation Plan (HTP) in Iran based on the Anderson model.

Methods and materials: This cross-sectional house-by-house study was conducted during Aug-Nov 2022 among 704 adult people in two cities under the coverage of the HTP and two cities out-side the plan using a multi-stage sampling method. Dental visit in the last year was considered as the utilization of the dental services. Independent Factors included the contextual, individual enabling, individual predisposing and individual need factors based on the Andersen model. Personal health behaviors were also assessed. Statistical analysis was conducted using Chi-square tests, simple and multivariable logistic regression models (α < 0.05).

Results: The 63.1% of the participants covered by the HTP and 57.7% of the population outside the plan sought dental care in the past year. In the final model individuals in the 35-44 age group (OR = 1.5, 95% CI = 1.02-2.2), males (OR = 1.7, 95% CI = 1.2-2.5), single individuals (OR = 1.4, 95% CI = 1.01-2) and those with the perception of need for dental treatment (OR = 2.1, 95% CI = 1.3-3.4) had higher chance of dental visit. Better perceived oral health status was associated with lower chance of visiting the dentist (OR = 0.9, 95% CI = 0.8-0.9). Being covered by the HTP was not significantly in association with the chance of dental visit in the last year (p value = 0.19, OR = 0.78, 95%CI = 0.55-1.12).

Conclusion: The predisposing factors including age, gender, marital status, and perceived oral health status and perceptions of dental need were the main factors in association with the dental utilization behavior among adults and the coverage by the HTP did not have significant effect on it.

Keywords: Dental health services; Health care reform; Health policy; Iran; Services utilization.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: The study was done in compliance with the Helsinki Declaration ( http://www.wma.net/en/30publications/10policies/b3/index.html ) and protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee in the Vice Chancellery of Research at the Isfahan University of Medical Sciences (IR.MUI.RESARCH.REC.1400.383). In addition, the necessary permits and approvals to enter homes in the respective areas were obtained from municipalities and other related governmental organizations and in each house, the investigators (one examiner and an assistant) offered the permits. The informed written consent was obtained from all of the participants. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The conceptual model of the study. The Phase 5 of the Anderson model. Adopted from Andersen RM. National health surveys and the behavioral model of health services use. Medical care. 2008;46 [7]:647 − 53
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Difference between participants regarding their perceived treatment needs based on their region of living. Note- *=p-value < 0.05, **=p-value < 0.001
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Petersen PE. World Health Organization global policy for improvement of oral health-World Health Assembly 2007. Int Dent J. 2008;58(3):115–21. - PubMed
    1. Najafi E, Amini-Rarani M, Moeeni M. Inequality in dental care expenditure in Iranian households: analysis of income quintiles and educational levels. BMC Oral Health. 2021;21:550. 10.1186/s12903-021-01912-6 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Abbasi M, Zamani M, Ganjbakhsh M. Justice in medical ethics. Med Ethics. 2010;3(10):11–33.
    1. Zardak AN, Amini-Rarani M, Abdollahpour I, Eslamipour F, Tahani B. Utilization of dental care among adult populations: a scoping review of applied models. BMC Oral Health. 2023;23(1):596. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kailembo A, Quiñonez C, Lopez Mitnik GV, Weintraub JA, Stewart Williams J, Preet R, et al. Income and wealth as correlates of socioeconomic disparity in dentist visits among adults aged 20 years and over in the United States, 2011–2014. BMC Oral Health. 2018;18:1–10. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources