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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Eur J Dent 2020; 14(03): 371-379
DOI: 10.1055/s-0040-1710400
Original Article

Assessing Oral Health Status, Practices, and Access to Care among War-Affected Refugees Living in San Antonio, Texas

Rami Saadeh
1   Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Ar-Ramtha, Jordan
,
David Cappelli
2   Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
,
Irene Bober-Moken
3   Department of Comprehensive Dentistry, School of Dentistry, University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, United States
,
Annaliese Cothron
3   Department of Comprehensive Dentistry, School of Dentistry, University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, United States
,
Magda de la Torre
3   Department of Comprehensive Dentistry, School of Dentistry, University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, United States
› Author Affiliations Funding None.
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Abstract

Objectives Refugees encounter several health disparities including oral health problems. This study evaluated the self-reported oral health status, practices, and access to care of adult refugees living in San Antonio, Texas, United States.

Materials and Methods Adult refugees (n = 207) who accessed services from two centers in San Antonio, completed this survey. Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine the relationship of the refugees’ demographics with oral health status, practices, and access to care.

Results Oral pain in the previous 12 months was common among refugees having been reported by almost 58.9% of the survey participants; 43% reported pain as the reason for their last dental visit. Approximately half of the participants reported both the condition to their teeth and gums as being good: 42.5 and 54.6%, respectively. Most participants (84%) reported brushing their teeth one or two times a day, and around 78% reported they never smoked. Fifty-two percent reported needing dental care in the past 12 months, but not being able to receive it; while 45.9% reported not having dental insurance, 41.5% reported not having money to pay a dentist. Fifteen percent reported never visiting a dentist. Arabic speakers, moving to the United States more recently, and lower level of education were associated with a poor oral health status and practices (p < 0.05).

Conclusion Refugees in this study encountered limited access to dental care. Their inability to seek dental care could affect their oral and general health, weaken efforts of preventing oral health diseases, and restrict their full inclusion into the community.

Keywords

refugees - San Antonio - oral health status - oral health practices - oral health access


Publication History

Article published online:
24 May 2020

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