Now showing items 2-8 of 8
| Abstract: | The aim of this study was to test the efficiency of an extended model of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) in predicting intention to improve oral health behaviors. The participants in this cross-sectional study were 153 first-year medical students (mean age 20.16, 50 males and 103 females) who completed a questionnaire assessing intentions, attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, oral health knowledge, and current oral hygiene behaviors. Attitudes toward oral health behaviors and perceived behavioral control contributed to the model for predicting intention, whereas subjective norms did not. Attitudes toward oral health behaviors were slightly more important than perceived behavioral control in predicting intention. Oral health knowledge significantly affected affective and cognitive attitudes, while current behavior was not a significant predictor of intention to improve oral health behavior. The model had a slightly better fit among females than among males, but was similar for home and professional dental health care. Our findings revealed that attitude, perceived behavioral control, and oral health knowledge are predictors of intention to improve oral health behaviors. These findings may help both dentists and dental hygienists in educating patients in oral health and changing patients’ oral hygiene habits. (J Oral Sci 53, 369-377, 2011). |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/10037/4179 |
| Abstract: | Oral health conditions have been investigated in 35-year-old Oslo citizens in four cross-sectional, age-specific epidemiological studies performed in 1973, 1984, 1993 and 2003. The main aim of the series of investigations was to monitor changes in oral health, including dental caries and endodontic and periodontal conditions. Data will give clues to what extent the documented improvements in oral health among children and adolescents also have been maintained into adulthood. Random samples of 200-250 35-year-olds were selected from The Norwegian Bureau of Statistics database and invited to participate. They completed a self administered questionnaire and were examined clinically and radiographically. The attendance rate varied between 64% and 80%. The results presented are based on time-trend analyses. Caries prevalence, measured as the mean DMFS scores, was high and stable from 1973 (DMFS=68.2) to 1984 (DMFS=66.5), but decreased from 1984 (DMFS=40.9) to 2003 (DMFS=26.1), indicating a 62% reduction in caries and treatment experience. During the whole period, the prevalence of root filled teeth and prevalence of apical periodontitis decreased, but no improvement from 1993 to 2003 could be demonstrated. Assessment of periodontal status showed that the proportion of persons with one or more periodontal pockets ≥6mm decreased from 22% in 1984 to 8% in 2003. The proportion of persons without recorded bone loss increased from 46% in 1973 to 76% in 2003. The oral hygiene improved from 1973 to 1993 with no further improvement during the last decennium. There has been a positive development in oral health among young, urban adults in Norway during the last 30 years. |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/10037/4425 |
| Abstract: | Background: In Finland, dental services are provided by a public (PDS) and a private sector. In the past, children, young adults and special needs groups were entitled to care and treatment from the public dental services (PDS). A major reform in 2001 – 2002 opened the PDS and extended subsidies for private dental services to all adults. It aimed to increase equity by improving adults' access to oral health care and reducing cost barriers. The aim of this study was to assess the impacts of the reform on the utilization of publicly funded and private dental services, numbers and distribution of personnel and costs in 2000 and in 2004, before and after the oral health care reform. An evaluation was made of how the health political goals of the reform: integrating oral health care into general health care, improving adults' access to care and lowering cost barriers had been fulfilled during the study period. Methods: National registers were used as data sources for the study. Use of dental services, personnel resources and costs in 2000 (before the reform) and in 2004 (after the reform) were compared. Results: In 2000, when access to publicly subsidised dental services was restricted to those born in 1956 or later, every third adult used the PDS or subsidised private services. By 2004, when subsidies had been extended to the whole adult population, this increased to almost every second adult. The PDS reported having seen 118 076 more adult patients in 2004 than in 2000. The private sector had the same number of patients but 542 656 of them had not previously been entitled to partial reimbursement of fees. The use of both public and subsidised private services increased most in big cities and urban municipalities where access to the PDS had been poor and the number of private practitioners was high. The PDS employed more dentists (6.5%) and the number of private practitioners fell by 6.9%. The total dental care expenditure (PDS plus private) increased by 21% during the study period. Private patients who had previously not been entitled to reimbursements seemed to gain most from the reform. Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that implementation of a substantial reform, that changes the traditionally defined tasks of the public and private sectors in an established oral health care provision system, proceeds slowly, is expensive and probably requires more stringent steering than was the case in Finland 2001 – 2004. However, the equity and fairness of the oral health care provision system improved and access to services and cost-sharing improved slightly. |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/10037/1887 |
| Abstract: | Background: Pit and fissure sealants (sealants) are widely used as a non-operative preventive method in public dental health in Finland. Most children under 19 years of age attend the community-organized dental health services free of charge. The aims of this study were to find out to what extent sealants were applied, what the attitudes of dental professionals towards sealant application were, and whether any existing sealant policies could be detected among the health centres or among the respondents in general. The study evaluated changes that had taken place in the policies used during a ten year period (1991–2001). Methods: A questionnaire was mailed to each chief dental officer (CDO) of the 265 public dental health centres in Finland, and to a group of general dentists (GDP) applying sealants in these health centres, giving a total of 434 questionnaires with 22 questions. The response rate was 80% (N = 342). Results: A majority of the respondents reported to application of sealants on a systematic basis for children with increased caries risk. The criteria for applying sealants and the actual strategies seemed to vary locally between the dentists within the health centres and between the health centres nationwide. The majority of respondents believed sealants had short- and long-term effects. The overall use of sealants decreased towards the end of the ten year period. The health centres (N = 28) choosing criteria to seal over detected or suspected enamel caries lesion had a DMFT value of 1.0 (SD ± 0.49) at age 12 (year 2000) compared to a value of 1.2 (SD ± 0.47) for those health centres (N = 177) applying sealants by alternative criteria (t-test, p < 0.05). Conclusion: There seems to be a need for defined guidelines for sealant application criteria and policy both locally and nationwide. Occlusal caries management may be improved by shifting the sealant policy from the traditional approach of prevention to interception, i.e. applying the sealants over detected or suspected enamel caries lesions instead of sealing sound teeth. |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/10037/1886 |
| Abstract: | Since 2002, adults have been able to choose oral health care services in the public sector or in the private sector in Finland. Though various subsidies for care exist in both sectors, the Public Dental Service (PDS) is a cheaper option for the patient but, on the other hand, there are no waiting lists for private care. The aim of this study was to assess middle-aged adults' use of dental services, willingness to pay (WTP) and ability to pay (ATP) for unexpected, urgent dental treatment. Postal questionnaires on use of dental services were sent to a random sample of 1500 47-59 year old adults living in three large municipalities in the Helsinki region. The initial response rate was 65.8%. Two hypothetical scenarios were presented: "What would be the highest price you would be prepared to pay to have a lost filling replaced immediately, or, at the latest, the day after losing the filling?" and " How much could you pay for unexpected dental expenses at two weeks notice, if you suddenly needed more comprehensive treatment?" Logistic regression analysis was used to analyse factors related to WTP and ATP. Most respondents (89.6%) had visited a dentist recently and a majority (76.1%) had used private services. For immediate replacement of a lost filling, almost all respondents (93.2%) were willing to pay the lower price charged in the PDS and 46.2% were willing to pay the private fee. High income and no subjective need for dental treatment were positively associated with the probability of paying a higher price. Most respondents (93.0%) were able to pay a low fee, EUR 50 and almost half (41.6%) at least EUR 300 for unexpected treatment at short notice. High income and male sex were associated with high ATP. There was a strong and statistically significant relationship between income and WTP and ATP for urgent dental care, indicating that access to publicly provided services improved equity for persons with low income. |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/10037/4890 |
Now showing items 2-8 of 8
Munin is powered by DSpace 1.8.2
The University Library of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø
Tel: +47 77 64 40 00, E-mail: munin@ub.uit.no