An analysis of the attitudes of dental patients attending general dental practice in Galway

Précis

The aim of this paper is to describe the patterns of dental attendance and attitudes towards tooth loss of general dental practice patients in Galway.

Abstract

Aim: To describe the patterns of dental attendance and attitudes towards tooth loss of general dental practice patients in Galway

Objectives: 1. To determine the pattern of adult dental attendance in general practices in Galway; and, 2. To examine the oral health attitudes of these patients.

Method: Questionnaires were distributed to 311 consecutive adult patients in the waiting rooms of ten general dental practices in Galway, which were randomly selected from the telephone directory.

Results: A total of 254 of the 311 questionnaires distributed were fully completed, returned and included in the results, giving a response rate of 81.7%. A total of 59% of dentate participants attended their dentist for annual or biannual examinations compared to 23% of edentate patients. Some 10.5% of medical card holders and 0.5% of non-medical card holders were edentulous.

Conclusions: The data from the survey indicated that medical card holders in Galway were more likely to be edentulous than non-medical card holders. Edentate patients were less likely to be regular dental attenders than dentate patients.

Journal of the Irish Dental Association 2013; 59 (4): 179-182

Martina Hayes
BDS MFDS
Clinical Research Fellow, Restorative Dentistry,
University College Cork

Francis Burke
BDentSc MSc PhD FDS FFD
Senior Lecturer/Consultant Restorative Dentistry,
University College Cork

Gerald McKenna
BDS MFDS
Lecturer in Prosthodontics and Oral Rehabilitation, Restorative Dentistry
University College Cork

Jamie Madden BE HDipStats MSc in Statistics
School of Mathematical Sciences
University College Cork

Michael Cronin BSc MSc PhD
Lecturer, School of Mathematical Sciences
University College Cork

Corresponding author: Martina Hayes
Restorative Dentistry, UCC Dental School and Hospital, Wilton, Cork, Ireland
T: 021-490 5000
E: Martina.Hayes@ucc.ie