title: Prevalence and correlates of dental caries in an elderly population in northeast China.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The present study aimed to investigate the prevalence and correlates of dental caries in elderly population in northeast China.
  
  
  METHODS
  A community-based, cross-sectional study among 2376 elderly subjects (age: 65-74 years) from nine urban areas and nine rural areas in three provinces of northeast China was conducted using multistage stratified random sampling per the World Health Organization oral health survey methodology. Decayed-missing-filled teeth (DMFT) and decayed-filled teeth (DFT) indices were used to evaluate the prevalence of dental caries. Face-to-face questionnaire survey on oral health was performed in a randomly selected subset (n = 1197). T test and chi square test were employed to compare groups for continuous and categorical variables, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and corresponding confidence intervals (CIs).
  
  
  RESULTS
  67.5% of elderly subjects reported dental caries (average DFT = 2.68±3.40), and the prevalence was higher in urban areas (P<0.01). Missing teeth accounted for 80.72% of DMFT, and filled teeth due to caries accounted for 2.08% with a rate higher in urban areas (P<0.01). Logistic regression analysis indicated significant association among elderly population in urban areas (OR 1.713; 95% CI 1.337-2.195), smoking (OR 1.779; 95% CI 1.384-2.288), and individuals without dental insurance (OR 2.050; 95% CI 1.120-3.754) with dental caries.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of dental caries in the elderly population in northeast China is high. The elderly from urban areas who smoke and who do not have a dental insurance are at a higher risk to develop dental caries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Dentistry, School of Stomatology, China Medical University, ShenYang, China.
authors.forename: Lu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Ruibo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cheng
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D044466:Asian People; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012424:Rural Population; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000453:epidemiology; D014505:Urban Population