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Changes in Area-level Socioeconomic Status and Oral Health of Indigenous Australian Children
- Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved
- Johns Hopkins University Press
- Volume 27, Number 1, February 2016 Supplement
- pp. 110-124
- 10.1353/hpu.2016.0034
- Article
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Objective. Dental diseases have shown to be influenced by area-level socioeconomic status. This study aims to assess the effects of change in area-level SES on the oral health of Australian Indigenous children. Methods. Data were collected from a national surveillance survey for children’s dental health at two points of time (2000–2002/2007–2010). The study examines caries experienced by area-level SES and whether changes in area-level SES (stable-high, upwardly-mobile, downwardly-mobile and stable low) affects caries experience. Results. Dental caries in both the deciduous and permanent dentition increased significantly among Indigenous children during the study period. In stable low-SES areas, the experience of decayed, missing and overall dmft/DMFT in both dentitions was highest compared with other groups at both Time 1(2.15 vs 1.61, 1.77, 1.87 and 0.86 vs 0.55, 0.67, 0.70 respectively) and Time 2 (3.23 vs 2.08, 2.17, 2.02 and 1.49 vs 1.18, 1.21 respectively). Conclusion. A change in area-level SES was associated with experience of dental disease among Indigenous Australian children.