Community Dental Health

cover art

Cover Date:
December 2015
Vol:
32
Issue:
4

Perceived mental stress in relation to oral health over time in middle-aged Swedish women

Objectives: To study perceived mental stress in relation to oral health among Swedish middle-aged women over a 36-year period, including considerations concerning smoking and socioeconomic status (SES). Methods: This combined medical and dental study includes
three cross-sectional (1968/9 N=746, 1980/1 N=432, 2004/5 N=500) surveys of 38- and 50-year-old women included in the Prospective
Population Study of Women in Gothenburg, Sweden. Panoramic radiography was used to register the number of teeth, filled teeth and
decayed teeth and the level of periodontal bone loss. The information concerning perceived mental stress, smoking and education (chosen
to represent SES) was questionnaire-based. Results: Perceived mental stress increased over the 36-year period, but was not related to
oral health. The time of examination year had a protective effect on oral health, with a larger number of remaining teeth, fewer decayed
teeth and less periodontal bone loss in the later examination year, 2004/5, compared with 1968/9. Risk factors for poor oral health were
smoking, greater age (50 vs. 38 years) and low educational level. Smokers had fewer filled teeth than non-smokers except in 2004/5, and
there was a shift over time towards fewer filled teeth among highly educated women. Conclusions: A remarkable increase in perceived
mental stress was seen among the women over time, but was not associated with oral health. Smoking, greater age and low educational
were risk factors for poor oral health, whereas a later examination year was a protective factor.

Key words: stress, oral health, women, epidemiology, periodontitis, socioeconomic status, Sweden

Article Price
£15.00
Institution Article Price
£
Page Start
241
Page End
246
Authors
A. Wennström, U. Wide Boman, M. Ahlqwist, C. Björkelund, M. Hakeberg

Articles from this issue

  • Title
  • Pg. Start
  • Pg. End

  1. Editorial - Local Dental Networks: Trendy or Transformational?
  2. 194
  3. 195

  1. The feasibility of using an alcohol screening tool in a UK dental setting to identify patients’ alcohol consumption
  2. 196
  3. 198

  1. Long term evaluation of the clinical effectiveness of community milk fluoridation in Bulgaria
  2. 199
  3. 203

  1. Is the value of oral health related to culture and environment, or function and aesthetics?
  2. 204
  3. 208

  1. Time trends and determinants of acute odontogenic maxillofacial infections in Lithuania: a retrospective national 2009-2013 treatment data audit
  2. 209
  3. 215

  1. Patient safety in domiciliary dental care for elderly nursing home residents in Sweden
  2. 216
  3. 220

  1. Dental anxiety and oral health in 15-year-olds: a repeated cross-sectional study over 30 years
  2. 221
  3. 225

  1. Development and evaluation of a Dental Patient Feedback on Consultation skills (DPFC) measure to enhance communication
  2. 226
  3. 230

  1. Listening to older adults: community consultation on a new dental service
  2. 231
  3. 236

  1. A retrospective audit of population service access trends for cleft lip and cleft palate patients
  2. 237
  3. 240

  1. Perceived mental stress in relation to oral health over time in middle-aged Swedish women
  2. 241
  3. 246

  1. Dental utilization disparities in a Jewish context: reasons and potential solutions
  2. 247
  3. 251

  1. Caregiver financial distress, depressive symptoms and limited social capital as barriers to children’s dental care in a midwestern county in the United States
  2. 252
  3. 256