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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Eur J Dent 2017; 11(02): 162-167
DOI: 10.4103/ejd.ejd_332_16
Original Article
Dental Investigation Society

Association of oral health behavior and the use of dental services with oral health literacy among adults in Tehran, Iran

Mohammad Mehdi Naghibi Sistani
1   Department of Community Oral Health, Oral Health Research Center, Faculty of Dentistry, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran
,
Jorma Virtanen
2   Department of Community Dentistry, Research Unit of Oral Health Sciences, University of Oulu; Medical Research Center, Oulu University Hospital, Oulu, Finland
3   Medical Research Center, Oulu University Hospital, Oulu, Finland
,
Reza Yazdani
4   Department of Community Oral Health, School of Dentistry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
,
Heikki Murtomaa
5   Department of Oral Public Health, Institute of Dentistry, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
› Author Affiliations
Further Information

Publication History

Publication Date:
04 October 2019 (online)

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ABSTRACT

Objective: To assess the association of oral health behavior (OHB) and the use of dental services with oral health literacy (OHL) among Iranian adults.Methods: This was a cross-sectional population study of a random sample of 1031 adults aged 18–65 in Tehran, Iran. We collected data on tooth brushing frequency, the consumption of sugary snacks and beverages, and time since last dental visit. To measure OHL, we used a validated OHL adults' questionnaire (OHL-AQ). In addition to descriptive analysis, we used multiple logistic regression models to assess the association of OHB and the most recent dental visit with OHL while controlling for socioeconomic and demographic factors.Results: The participants' mean age was 36.3 (standard deviation 12.9), and 51% were women. Of the participants, 81.3% reported brushing their teeth daily (≥1/day), 37.6% consumed sugary snacks or beverages between meals less than once daily (<1/day), and 36.8% used dental services within the past 6 months. In the adjusted models, high OHL scores significantly correlated with daily (≥1/day) tooth brushing (odds ratio [OR] = 1.97, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.30–2.98), the consumption of sugary snacks or beverages (<1/day between meals) (OR = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.13–2.15) and the recent use of dental services (≤6 months) (OR = 1.59, 95% CI: 1.15–2.21), respectively.Conclusions: OHL relates significantly to improved OHB and the use of dental services. Oral health promotion programs should, therefore, take into account improvements in adults' OHL, particularly in countries with developing health-care services.

Key words:

Oral health behavior - oral health literacy - use of dental services
 

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