title: Social disparities in dentition status among American adults.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the overall dentition status of American adults, to investigate disparities and changes in dentition using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys 2005-2006 and 2007-2008 and to study the effects of family poverty status, education, citizenship and language on dentition after adjusting for other demographics.
  
  
  METHODS
  Descriptive statistics were used to explore and summarise dentition status. The prevalence of dentition markers over two surveys were compared using tests of proportions and a series of regressions were used to estimate the strength of association of family poverty status, education, citizenship and language with the four markers of dentition status.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, dentition status has improved in adults. However, gaps exist in that non-Hispanic Black and Mexican-Americans have a higher prevalence of dental decay and lower restoration rates than other races. After adjusting for selected demographics, adults with less education (<12 years) and lower family income had significantly higher dental decay rates, lower restoration rates and more missing teeth than those with more education (≥12 years) and those with higher family incomes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study indicates that disparities in dentition associated with race/ethnicity, education and income still exist among adults in the USA. The results also indicate that to improve overall oral health and close the existing gaps in oral health, increased access to dental care would be needed for people who have low incomes and low levels of education.
authors.affiliation: School of Dentistry, University of Missouri at Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, USA.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Zhiwu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Mary P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Walker
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology; D003793:Dental Restoration, Permanent / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D054625:Healthcare Disparities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D017058:Mexican Americans / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D010895:Pit and Fissure Sealants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011203:Poverty; D015995:Prevalence; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014076:Tooth Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016388:Tooth Loss / Q000453:epidemiology; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D010895:Pit and Fissure Sealants
keywords: NHANES; Social disparities; demographics; dentition