The purpose of the Kentucky Elder Oral Health Survey (KEOHS) was to assess the oral health status of Kentuckians 65 and older.
The KEOHS consisted of a self-administered questionnaire and a clinical examination. Recruitment occurred from May 2002 through March 2005 of persons aged 65 and older (n=1386) whose functional ability was classified by residential setting. Independent elders living in their own homes were designated as “well-elders,” those who lived in skilled nursing facilities and who were functionally dependent were designated as “nursing home elders,” and those older adults who were considered frail were designated as “homebound elders.”
Significant associations were found between the functional ability of the elders and demographic characteristics. While elders who were homebound reported the highest rate of barriers to care, dental insurance, affordability, and transportation were consistently reported as barriers for all groups of elders.
This study has established the baseline oral health status of older adults in Kentucky and the data shows-differences that exist for various community living situations.
There is a pressing need for a reliable, low-cost method of assessing the gingival and periodontal status of large population groups. Existing indexes, despite their value in dental public health, are still too subject to examiner variability for use by uncalibrated examiners. This study describes an evaluation of a quick, inexpensive, extraoral colorimetric test for gingival inflammation, based on a reaction between saliva and the test material. It could probably be applied by non-professional personnel. In this study, the test was applied to a population of elementary schoolchildren, dental hygiene students and faculty, and adult inmates of two correctional institutions. These populations were chosen on the assumption that they would exhibit varying intensities of gingival inflammation. Values obtained from the colorimetric test carried out by one researcher were compared with Gingival Index (GI) scores observed by a different examiner. Results suggest that the colorimetric test may be a valid, reliable means of detecting major differences in the prevalence of gingival inflammation in most adult populations, although having little, if any, useful application among children at the mixed dentition stage.
The effects of the optimistic bias of R2 on oral health data were investigated by means of a cross validation study in which the number of predictors in a regression model was manipulated. The use of too many predictors increased positive bias and reduced the true predictive quality of a regression model and should be avoided through the use of appropriate stepwise procedures.
Rice rats were used to test the effect of topically applied chlorhexidine gluconate and stannous fluoride on the loss of periodontal bone. Eighty‐eight weanlings were divided into eight groups of eleven animals each. Four groups were swabbed five times each week with either: a) 0.2 % chlorhexidine; b) 2 % chlorhexidine; c) 0.2 % chlorhexidine and 10 % stannous fluoride combined, or d) deionized water. Four other groups were swabbed only twice (once at the start and once at day 30) with either: e) 0.2 % chlorhexidine; f) 10 % SnF2; g) 0.2 % chlorhexidine and 10 % SnF2, or h) deionized water. After two months the animals were killed and the mandibular quadrants scored to estimate bone loss. Concentrations of 0.2 and 2 % chlorhexidine applied five times per week and 10 % SnF2 applied only twice, significantly reduced bone loss when compared to the deionized water control. The more frequent applications had a significant beneficial effect as compared to the less frequent applications.
A method was developed in which a dental chart schematic, printed on a standard 80-column computer card, could be used to record DMF data for analysis using mark sensing technology. The binary image of each column was read by a standard card reader and this information was used to create a detailed DMF analysis. This method uses readily available technology and could be modified for many research purposes.
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