Journal
JOURNAL OF DENTAL RESEARCH
Volume 88, Issue 7, Pages 653-657Publisher
SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC
DOI: 10.1177/0022034509339300
Keywords
oral health; aesthetics; poverty; qualitative research
Categories
Funding
- FRSQ Network for Oral and Bone Health Research
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research
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Oral diseases are highly prevalent among people on social assistance. Despite benefiting from public dental coverage in North America, these people rarely consult the dentist. One possible reason is rooted in their perception of oral health and the means to improve it. To respond to this question, largely unexplored, we conducted qualitative research through 8 focus groups and 15 individual interviews in Montreal (Canada). Thematic analysis revealed that people on social assistance: (a) define oral health in a social manner, placing tremendous value on dental appearance; (b) complain about the decline of their dental appearance and its devastating impact on self-esteem, social interaction, and employability; and (c) feel powerless to improve their oral health and therefore contemplate extractions and complete dentures. Our research demonstrates that perception of oral health strongly influences treatment preference and explains low and selective use of dental services in this disadvantaged population.
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