Factors affecting self-ratings of oral health.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship of self-rated oral health to a comprehensive battery of clinical, sociodemographic, physical health, and mental health measures in a well-elderly urban population.


METHODS
Results are based on telephone interviews and clinical assessments of 550 subjects over 65 years of age participating in a Los Angeles-based Medicare project during 1990. Subjects were mostly female, white (89%), with above-average income.


RESULTS
Findings show that: (1) the DMF measure is not as strongly related to self-rated oral health as was a single measure of missing teeth; (2) the major predictors of self-rated oral health were "worry about teeth" and "appearance of teeth" followed by total missing teeth, race, education, and depression scores; and (3) self-rated general health is related to self-rated oral health.


CONCLUSIONS
Self-rated oral health may be, for older adults, a better measure of "health" than of "morbidity".
Matthias
R E
RE
UCLA School of Public Policy and Social Research 90095, USA.
Atchison
K A
KA
Lubben
J E
JE
De Jong
F
F
Schweitzer
S O
SO
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004245:DMF Index; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D004522:Educational Status; D004955:Esthetics, Dental; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D015141:Los Angeles; D008297:Male; D006278:Medicare; D008603:Mental Health; D009909:Oral Health; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D016388:Tooth Loss / Q000523:psychology; D014481:United States; D014504:Urban Health; D044465:White People