Researchers based at Bristol Dental School found that was the case even at 17 years of age, which is when NHS dentistry is free, suggesting that the cost of dental treatment alone is not the issue.
This is one of few studies that have used a longitudinal approach to looking at dental inequalities as most studies take a ‘snapshot’ of participants at one time point, which can be prone to bias.
The study used questionnaire results from 2,468 participants at 17 years and 1,639 participants at 23 years in Bristol’s longitudinal Children of the 90s study, as well as SED assessments between pregnancy and 2 years and 9 months of age. A complex type of modelling called Structural Equation Modelling allowed the researchers to simultaneously examine different factors that impact dental visits.
The researchers found that the perception of oral health as being important (or not) was one of the key factors that predicted regular dental visits.
The focus of the study was on preventative dental visits. Regular preventative check-ups allow for early diagnosis, management and treatment of oral health issues and better overall health outcomes.
It is important to note that the Children of the 90s cohort is a relatively affluent group, with 91% of 17-year-olds in the study going for regular routine check-ups (although this reduced to 71.3% at 23 years). Despite this, there were still inequalities found in the study, suggesting that the overall picture in the UK could potentially be more unequal.
Around eight per cent (8.2%) of the participants were scored as having dental anxiety, and this was a key predictor to having irregular dental visits at ages 17 and 23.
Dr Amira Mohamed, Lecturer at Alexandria University (previously at Bristol Dental School) and study lead said: “This study suggests that early life is a really key time for influencing oral health behaviours and outcomes later in life. We need to be looking to make early interventions to encourage better oral health for all, rather than only tackling inequalities in access to dental care in adulthood.”
“We should be doing more to provide a comprehensive oral health education for children and teens to minimise the socioeconomic disadvantage that we see from this study. Community based approaches can also provide support and encourage regular dental visits.”
Paper
“Early socioeconomic disadvantage as a predictor of dental care utilisation in adolescence and early adulthood” by A. Mohamed, A. Waylen, and P. Robinson in BMC Oral Health [open access]