Oral Health

Oral Health and Mental Distress among Military Veteran Cancer Survivors: Insights from the 2016 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System

An Open Access article published in the Health Behavior and Policy Review Journal.
The full article is available as a PDF download.

Authors:

Joan M. Davis, RDH, PhD
Justin T. McDaniel, PhD Twitter
Musa Yahaya, MBBS, MPH
Robert J. McDermott, PhD

Objective:

Mental health issues occur among service members and veterans (SMVs). A cancerdiagnosis exacerbates these issues. Many veterans with poor mental health lack adequate dental care. We examined oral health and mental distress among SMV cancer survivors.

Methods:

We retrieved data from the 2016 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. We calculated theaverage number of mentally unhealthy days in the last 30 across categories of tooth removal (0, 1-5, ≥ 6 but not all, and all). We calculated state-based percentages of tooth removal (≥ 6 teeth) among SMV cancer survivors.

Results:

The greatest percentage of removal of ≥ 6 teeth among SMV cancer survivors occurred in Mississippi (50.3%), West Virginia (49.3%), and Kentucky (46.6%). Mental distress increased with the number of teeth removed. SMV cancer survivors with no history of tooth removal reported 2.08 mentally unhealthy days; 1-5 teeth removed, 2.34 days; ≥ 6 but not all, 3.20 days; and all teeth removed, 4.08 days.

Conclusion:

The history of ≥ 6 or more teeth removed increased SMV cancer survivor risk for mental distress. Tooth loss was particularly prevalent among veterans in the Mississippi Delta and Appalachia. Improving oral healthcare among veterans who are cancer survivors may reduce mental distress.

Source: Health Behavior and Policy Review, Volume 7, Number 5, October 2020, pp. 452-460(9)
Publisher: Paris Scholar Publishing Ltd.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.14485/HBPR.7.5.7

2021-04-29T22:12:07-06:00October 15th, 2020|Oral Health, Veterans|

Parents’ Experiences with a School-based Dental Sealant Project in Central Appalachia: A Qualitative Study

An Open Access article published in the Health Behavior and Policy Review Journal.
The full article is available as a PDF download.

Authors:

Sarah E. Raskin, PhD, MPH Twitter

Objective:

In this study, I describe parents’ experiences with a rural school-based dental sealant project (SBSP), a Healthy People 2020 objective for optimizing population-level protection against dental decay and reducing oral health disparities.

Methods:

I conducted parent interviews (N = 16) and coded them with NVivo 10, using deductive and inductive codes, from which I identified themes.

Results:

Parents enrolled children in the SBSP based on their confidence in local public institutions and the project’s convenience and accessibility. Parents did not understand the prevention orientation of the project, what services were offered or delivered, service limitations, or next steps, in particular their need to complete referrals to dentists. Parents’ recommendations for program improvement included strengthening communications and reviving a defunct dental public health mobile unit that had previously treated children’s existing dental problems.

Conclusion:

SBSPs should proactively identify and address family and contextual factors when planning and implementing projects. SBSPs should also strengthen case management capacity, collaborate with schools to bolster communications and message clarification, and be relieved of administrative and duplicate travel burdens that impede team members’ capacity to fulfill technical and case management-oriented duties, namely support the transition and maintenance of children into dental homes.

Source: Health Behavior and Policy Review, Volume 7, Number 3, May 2020, pp. 215-222(8)
Publisher: Paris Scholar Publishing Ltd.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.14485/HBPR.7.3.6

2023-05-15T15:02:31-06:00June 20th, 2020|Oral Health, Rural Health, School Health|
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