Premium
Dental attendance among older adults with intellectual disabilities in Ireland
Author(s) -
Phadraig C Mac Giolla,
Burke Eilish,
McCallion Philip,
McGlinchey Eimear,
Nunn June,
McCarron Mary
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
special care in dentistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.328
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1754-4505
pISSN - 0275-1879
DOI - 10.1111/scd.12067
Subject(s) - medicine , attendance , residence , population , cross sectional study , gerontology , family medicine , demography , environmental health , pathology , sociology , economics , economic growth
Purpose To investigate dental attendance patterns and reasons for nonattendance among older adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) in Ireland. Methods A cross‐sectional survey of quantitative data and text analysis of qualitative data drawn from a nationally representative sample of 753 people with ID over 40 years of age in Ireland. Participants were considered as regular or irregular dental attenders for analysis of quantitative data. Text analysis grouped open‐ended responses for analysis. Result There were slightly more females. Mean age was 54.1 years (SD = 8.8). Almost half had moderate ID. A majority (86.5%) of respondents attended dental services within the last 2 years. Age and type of residence were associated with frequency of attendance ( p < .01), as were dentate status and reported oral problems ( p < .001). Text analysis revealed a lack of perceived need as a reason for not attending regularly. Conclusion Older people with ID in Ireland report a very high level of regular dental attendance. Irregular attenders did not attend because they saw no need. There is a need to further study the importance of regular dental attendance for this population.