Oral health cannot be isolated from physical or mental health and should form part of comprehensive care
Dental disease affects 3.9 billion people worldwide, with untreated caries being the most prevalent condition in the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010.1 In spite of this, disparities in oral ill health receive less attention than those in other chronic illnesses, even though dental disease is significantly more prevalent and severe in socially disadvantaged and marginalised groups. These include people on lower incomes, those born outside Australia, Indigenous Australians and people with severe mental illness.2-4 For instance, in comparison with the overall Australian population, Indigenous Australians have 2.77 times the prevalence of untreated dental caries,3 while people with severe mental illness have nearly three times the odds of total tooth loss, the end result of untreated caries and gum disease.4
The full article is accessible to AMA members and paid subscribers. Login to read more or purchase a subscription now.
Please note: institutional and Research4Life access to the MJA is now provided through Wiley Online Library.
- 1. Marcenes W, Kassebaum NJ, Bernabé E, et al. Global burden of oral conditions in 1990-2010: a systematic analysis. J Dent Res 2013; 92: 592-597.
- 2. Mejia G, Armfield JM, Jamieson LM. Self-rated oral health and oral health-related factors: the role of social inequality. Aust Dent J 2014; 59: 226-233.
- 3. Schuch HS, Haag DG, Kapellas K, et al. The magnitude of Indigenous and non-Indigenous oral health inequalities in Brazil, New Zealand and Australia. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol 2017; 45: 434-441.
- 4. Kisely S, Baghaie H, Lalloo R, et al. A systematic review and meta-analysis of the association between poor oral health and severe mental illness. Psychosom Med 2015; 77: 83-92.
- 5. Kassebaum NJ, Smith AGC, Bernabé E, et al. Global, regional, and national prevalence, incidence, and disability-adjusted life years for oral conditions for 195 countries, 1990–2015: a systematic analysis for the global burden of diseases, injuries, and risk factors J Dent Res 2017; 96: 380-387.
- 6. Gibney JM, Wright C, Sharma A, et al. The oral health status of older patients in acute care on admission and Day 7 in two Australian hospitals. Age Ageing 2017; 46: 852-856.
- 7. Linden GJ, Lyons A, Scannapieco FA. Periodontal systemic associations: review of the evidence. J Periodontol 2013; 84(4 Suppl): S8-S19.
- 8. Lafon A, Pereira B, Dufour T, et al. Periodontal disease and stroke: a meta-analysis of cohort studies. Eur J Neurol 2014; 21: 1155-1161.
- 9. D’Aiuto F, Orlandi M, Gunsolley JC. Evidence that periodontal treatment improves biomarkers and CVD outcomes. J Periodontol 2013; 84(4 Suppl): S85-S105.
- 10. Teshome A, Yitayeh A. The effect of periodontal therapy on glycemic control and fasting plasma glucose level in type 2 diabetic patients: systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Oral Health 2016; 17: 31.
- 11. Scannapieco FA, Dasanayake AP, Chhun N. Does periodontal therapy reduce the risk for systemic diseases? Dent Clin North Am 2010; 54: 163-181.
- 12. Li C, Lv Z, Shi Z, et al. Periodontal therapy for the management of cardiovascular disease in patients with chronic periodontitis. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2014; (8): CD009197.
- 13. Matsuyama Y, Aida J, Watt RG, et al. Dental status and compression of life expectancy with disability J Dent Res 2017; 96: 1006-1013.
- 14. Lawrence D, Hancock KJ, Kisely S. The gap in life expectancy from preventable physical illness in psychiatric patients in Western Australia: retrospective analysis of population based registers. BMJ 2013; 346: f2539.
- 15. Cockburn N, Pradhan A, Taing MW, et al. Oral health impacts of medications used to treat mental illness. J Affect Disord 2017; 223: 184-193.
- 16. Burchell A, Fembacher S, Lewis R, Neil A. ‘Dental as Anything’: inner south community health service dental outreach to people with a mental illness. Aust J Prim Health 2006; 12: 75-82.
No relevant disclosures.