title: Oral health in a First Nations and a non-Aboriginal population in Manitoba.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To analyze the prevalence of poor oral health and selected determinants in First Nations (FN) and Caucasian samples in Manitoba, Canada.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional survey, nested in a cohort study.
  
  
  METHODS
  FN and Caucasian participants completed a questionnaire on socio-demographic variables, oral health symptoms, and oral health-related behaviours as part of a broader cohort study comparing these ethnic groups for different chronic immune mediated diseases.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Caucasians reported higher levels of employment, education, and urban dwelling than FNs (p<0.001). FNs reported smoking more, and having poorer oral health-related behaviours than Caucasians (p<0.001). After adjustment for age and sex, FN reported having more oral health symptoms than Caucasians (odds ratio (OR): 2.71; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.73, 4.52), but the association was reduced and not statistically significant after adjustment for other socio-demographic variables (OR=1.34; 95% CI: 0.58, 3.10). Oral health symptoms were associated with current smoking among FN (adjusted OR=2.67, 95% CI: 1.05, 6.78). Oral hygiene behaviours were significantly related to smoking status, rural living and education for both groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Oral health-related behaviours and smoking were found to be significant factors explaining poor oral health, which were lower for the FNs cohort than the Caucasian sample. However oral health and related behaviours were less related to their ethnicity than to socio-demographic factors, suggesting that policies to change behaviour will not result in lasting reductions in oral health differences between these groups in Manitoba.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada.
authors.forename: Andrea Katryn
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Blanchard
authors.forename: Xikui
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Hani
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: El-Gabalawy
authors.forename: Qier
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: Pam
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Orr
authors.forename: Brenda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Elias
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rawsthorne
authors.forename: Donna
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hart
authors.forename: Shirley
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chubey
authors.forename: Charles N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Bernstein
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007198:Indians, North American; D008297:Male; D008350:Manitoba; D008875:Middle Aged; D009059:Mouth Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D009910:Oral Hygiene / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D044465:White People