Search

IntroductionThis study conducted a comparative analysis between two large data repositories, the All of Us (AoU) medical data and BigMouth dental data repositories.MethodsThe comparison analysis includes variables related to behavioral and systemic health, health literacy, and overall health status across race, ethnicity, and gender. The analytic approach used descriptive statistics, Chi-square, odds ratio, and 95% confidence intervals; significant comparisons were measured with Cohen's D effect sizes.ResultsIn the AoU dataset, 80.6% of Hispanic or Latino participants reported alcohol use compared to 16.8% in the BigMouth data repository. The female cohort in AoU showed 87.9% alcohol use, a contrast to BigMouth's 26.0%. Additionally, the diabetes prevalence among females was 8.8% in AoU vs. 21.6% in BigMouth. Differences in health literacy were observed, with 49.2% among Hispanic or Latino participants in AoU, in contrast to BigMouth's 3.2%. Despite this, 70.1% of Hispanic or Latino respondents in AoU reported satisfactory health status, while BigMouth indicated a much higher figure at 98.3%.DiscussionThese variations highlight the importance of targeted health interventions addressing racial/ethnic and gender influences. Differences may arise from recruitment approaches, participant demographics, and healthcare access. There is a need for collaboration, standardized data collection, and inclusive recruitment to remedy these discrepancies. Further research is imperative to understand the underlying causes, facilitate interventions that address the disparities, and advocate for a more inclusive healthcare system.

This study describes social support of Hispanic parents and the correlation with dental caries in their children. A cross-sectional study design was utilized to assess the 157 parent-child triads recruited from the Children's Hospital Colorado Dental Clinic. The Basic Research Factors Questionnaire (BRFQ) survey was utilized to assess parents' oral health knowledge, attitudes, behavior, and other psychosocial measures with social support as the main predictor variable. Bivariate associations between the independent variables and dmfs were conducted. Independent variables with a bivariate association of p ≤ 0.2 for the outcome variable were included in the multivariable linear regression model. Dental caries in children was significantly associated with less overall parental social support (β = −10.10, p = 0.03). Overall social support was divided into four sub-categories: errand help, money help, childcare help, and transportation help. Dental caries decreased by 7.70 units for every 1-unit increase in transportation help (β = −7.70, p = 0.03). A significant association was observed between parental knowledge on dental utilization and dmfs (β = −2.70, p = 0.04). In the multivariable linear regression model, caries was significantly associated with social support (β = −11.18, p = 0.02) and knowledge on dental utilization (β = −3.84, p = 0.01). The study concludes that a higher level of social support and knowledge on dental utilization for Hispanic parents is correlated with lower rates of dental caries in their children.

Studies have shown that mental health and oral health may be correlated, with associations demonstrated between mental health problems and tooth loss, periodontal disease, and tooth decay. The COVID-19 pandemic had alarming implications for individuals' and communities' mental and emotional health. This study examined the associations between mental health status, oral health status, and oral healthcare utilization and highlighted the impact of COVID-19 on mental health. Additionally, this study examines specific sociodemographic factors that may amplify oral health disparities. A nationally representative survey was conducted to capture attitudes, experiences, and behaviors related to oral health, mental health, and unmet oral health needs. Eighteen percent of respondents were categorized as having poor mental health. Visiting the dentist in the last year was more common amongst individuals with good mental health. From the logistic regression model, mental health status, age group, race/ethnicity, education, and last dental visit were all significantly associated with of oral health status. Mental health status, age group, and income groups were all significantly associated with unmet oral health need. Future work should focus on the mental-oral health association, including determining ways to improve oral healthcare utilization and oral health status among people with poorer mental health.