Analysis of factors related to the dental caries and periodontal diseases of the elderly

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the factors related to the dental caries and periodontal diseases of Korean elderly people in terms of demographic characteristics, oral health promotion behavior and systemic diseases in an effort to provide information on national policy setting and policy evaluation about the prevention of tooth loss resulting from severe oral diseases and the promotion of elderly people`s oral health.

Methods: The first-, second- and third-year raw data of the 4th National Health and Nutrition Survey were utilized, and the data of 3,882 elderly people who got a dental checkup were analyzed. The statistical package SPSS WIN 19.0 was employed to make a logistic regression analysis.

Results: The senior citizens who did toothbrushing less frequently were more likely to have dental caries. As for periodontal diseases, the men were 1.34-fold more likely to have periodontal diseases than the women, and the respondents whose self-rated health state was worse were 1.40-fold more likely to have periodontal diseases than the others whose self-rated health state was better. The senior citizens who ever received treatment from unqualified people were 1.30-fold more likely to have peridontal diseases, and those who took neither vitamin compound nor minerals were 1.30-fold more likely to have periodontal diseases. Those who suffered from low High-density Lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL) were 1.35-fold more likely to have periodontal diseases than the others who didn`t.

Conclusions: Those whose self-rated health status is worse should especially be concerned about periodontal diseases. Specifically, it`s needed to pay attention to the low-income classes, and the government should take measures to provide quality welfare services for elderly people not to receive treatment from unqualified people. Besides, research efforts should be made to determine the relationship between periodontal diseases and low HDL- cholesterolemia.