Correlates of root caries experience in middle-aged and older adults in the Northwest Practice-based REsearch Collaborative in Evidence-based DENTistry research network

• Published in: The Journal of the American Dental Association (1939) Vol. 144; no. 5; pp. 507 - 516
• Main Authors: Chi, Donald L., DDS, PhD, Berg, Joel H., DDS, MS, Kim, Amy S., DDS, Scott, JoAnna, PhD
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Inc 01.05.2013; American Dental Association
• Subjects: Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Alcohol Drinking - epidemiology; Community-Based Participatory Research; Cross-Sectional Studies; Decayed missing or filled teeth; Dental caries; Dental Caries Susceptibility; Dental health; Dental Plaque - epidemiology; Dental research; Dentistry; DMF Index; DMFT; Educational Status; Feeding Behavior; Female; Humans; Income - statistics & numerical data; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Middle age; Middle Aged; Northwestern United States - epidemiology; older adults; Oral Hygiene; Practice-based REsearch Collaborative in Evidence-based DENTistry; PRECEDENT; Prevalence; Retrospective Studies; Risk Assessment; Risk Factors; Root caries; Root Caries - epidemiology; Sex Factors; Smoking - epidemiology; Tooth Root - pathology; Xerostomia - epidemiology; Root caries; risk factors; DMFT; older adults; aged; Practice-based REsearch Collaborative in Evidence-based DENTistry; dental caries susceptibility; Decayed missing or filled teeth; PRECEDENT
• ISSN: 0002-8177; 1943-4723
• DOI: 10.14219/jada.archive.2013.0153

ABSTRACT Background The authors examined the correlates of root caries experience for middle-aged adults (aged 45–64 years) and older adults (65 years and older) to test the hypothesis that the factors related to root caries are different for middle-aged adults than they are for older adults. Methods The authors conducted an observational cross-sectional study that focused on adult patients aged 45 to 97 years recruited from the Northwest Practice-based REsearch Collaborative in Evidence-based DENTistry research network (N = 775). The outcome variable was any root caries experience (no/yes). The authors hypothesized that sociodemographic, intra- oral and behavioral factors were root caries correlates. The authors used Poisson regression models to generate overall and age-stratified prevalence ratios (PRs) of root caries, and they used generalized estimating equations to account for practice-level clustering of participants. Results A total of 19.6 percent of adults had any root caries. A dentist’s assessment that the patient was at high risk of developing any caries was associated with greater prevalence of root caries experience in both middle-aged adults (PR, 2.70; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.63–4.46) and older adults (PR, 1.87; 95 percent CI, 1.19–2.95). The following factors were associated significantly with increased root caries prevalence but only for middle-aged adults: male sex ( P = .02), self-reported dry mouth ( P < .001), exposed roots ( P = .03) and increased frequency of eating or drinking between meals ( P = .03). No other covariates were related to root caries experience for older adults. Conclusions Within a practice-based research network, the factors associated with root caries experience were different for middle-aged adults than they were for older adults. Research is needed to identify relevant root caries correlates for adults 65 years and older. Practical Implications Interventions aimed at preventing root caries are likely to be different for middle-aged adults than for older adults. Dentists should use root caries prevention programs that address appropriate aged-based risk factors.