Association of Oral Health Literacy and Dental Visitation in an Inner-City Emergency Department Population

Emmett Henderson, Preeti Dalawari, Jennifer Fitzgerald and Leslie Hinyard
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Emmett Henderson: Center for Health Outcomes Research, Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO 63104, USA
Preeti Dalawari: Department of Surgery, Division of Emergency Medicine, Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA
Jennifer Fitzgerald: Department of Surgery, Division of Emergency Medicine, Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA
Leslie Hinyard: Center for Health Outcomes Research, Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO 63104, USA

IJERPH, 2018, vol. 15, issue 8, 1-10

Abstract: To examine the association between oral health literacy (OHL) with sociodemographic variables and dental visitation in adults presenting to an urban emergency department (ED). Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of a convenience sample of 556 adults aged 18–90. Interview data from the study were used to collect self-reported sociodemographic characteristics and dental visitation history. The OHL of the study participants was measured using the Health Literacy in Dentistry scale (HeLD-14), and the score was dichotomized into low and high OHL. Bivariate associations between sociodemographic variables and OHL were conducted using chi-square tests, and logistic regression was used to examine the association between OHL and dental visitation within the past year. Results: Sixty percent of participants reported having visited a dentist within the past year. Over two-thirds of the sample was classified as having low OHL. Low OHL was more common in non-White races, less-educated, single, unemployed, and lower-income individuals, and those without a primary care physician or dental insurance ( p < 0.05). Patients with low oral health literacy were 39% less likely to have visited the dentist in the past year (OR = 0.61; 95% CI 0.38, 0.96). Conclusions: This study highlights significant disparities in OHL. Interventions targeted toward the unique needs of underserved populations should be developed to improve health outcomes.

Keywords: oral health literacy; emergency medicine; oral health; public health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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