Decomposing socioeconomic inequalities in dental caries among Chinese adults: findings from the 4th national oral health survey

BMC Oral Health

Research

Chunxiao Wang¹  Bo Wang²  Xing Wang²  Yanmei Dong³  Shuguo Zheng⁴  Yan Si⁴  Weijian Wang⁴  Shuo Du⁴  Mengru Xu⁴  Xuenan Liu⁴  Wensheng Rong⁴  Menglin Cheng⁵  Huancai Lin⁶  Baojun Tai⁷  Xiping Feng⁸  Qing Chang⁹  Deyu Hu^1,10 

[1] Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, P.R. of China;Chinese Stomatological Association, Beijing, P.R. of China;Department of Cariology and Endodontology, National Engineering Laboratory for Digital and Material Technology of Stomatology, Beijing Key Laboratory of Digital Stomatology, Peking University School and Hospital of Stomatology, Beijing, P.R. of China;Department of Preventive Dentistry, National Engineering Laboratory for Digital and Material Technology of Stomatology, Beijing Key Laboratory of Digital Stomatology, Peking University School and Hospital of Stomatology, Beijing, P.R. of China;Department of Stomatology, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China;Guanghua School of Stomatology, Hospital of Stomatology, Sun Yetsen University, Guangzhou, P.R. of China;School & Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, Wuhan, P.R. of China;Shanghai Ninth People’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, P.R. of China;The Second Dental Center, National Engineering Laboratory for Digital and Material Technology of Stomatology, Beijing Key Laboratory of Digital Stomatology, Peking University School and Hospital of Stomatology, Beijing, P.R. of China;West China School of Stomatology, Sichuan University, Chengdu, P.R. of China;

关键词: Adults;    Inequality;    Dental caries;    Concentration index;    Socioeconomic disparities in health;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12903-023-03037-4

 received in 2022-11-23, accepted in 2023-05-13,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

ObjectiveThis cross-sectional study aimed to investigate socioeconomic inequalities in dental caries among adults (35 years and older) in China and explore the contributions of various factors to these inequalities.MethodsThis study included 10,983 adults (3,674 aged 35–44 years, 3,769 aged 55–64 years and 3,540 aged 65–74 years) who participated in the 4th National Oral Health Survey (2015–2016) in China. Dental caries status was evaluated by the decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT) index. Concentration indices (CIs) were applied to quantify the different degrees of socioeconomic-related inequality in DMFT, decayed teeth with crown or root caries (DT), missing teeth due to caries or other reasons (MT), and filled teeth without any primary or secondary caries (FT) among adults of different age groups. Decomposition analyses were conducted to identify the determinants and their associations with inequalities in DMFT.ResultsThe significant negative CI indicated that DMFT for the total sample were concentrated among socioeconomically disadvantaged adults (CI = − 0.06; 95% confidence interval [CI], − 0.073 to − 0.047). The CIs for DMFT for adults aged 55–64 and 65–74 years were − 0.038 (95% CI, − 0.057 to − 0.018) and − 0.039 (95% CI, − 0.056 to − 0.023), respectively, while the CI for DMFT for adults aged 35–44 years was not statistically significant (CI = − 0.002; 95% CI, − 0.022 to 0.018). The concentration indices of DT were negative and concentrated in disadvantaged populations, while FT showed pro-rich inequalities in all age groups. Decomposition analyses showed that age, education level, toothbrushing frequency, income and type of insurance contributed substantially to socioeconomic inequalities, accounting for 47.9%, 29.9%, 24.5%,19.1%, and 15.3%, respectively.ConclusionDental caries was disproportionately concentrated among socioeconomically disadvantaged adults in China. The results of these decomposition analyses are informative for policy-makers attempting to develop targeted health policy recommendations to reduce dental caries inequalities in China.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2023

【 图 表 】

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