Diagnostic predictability of self-reported questionnaire for periodontitis / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: The present study aimed to evaluate the validity of a set of self-reported questionnaires for periodontitis for estimating the prevalence of chronic adult periodontitis in the Korean population. METHODS: The questionnaire is comprised of a total of 14 questions with four summarized concepts including self-diagnosis of oral status, subjective signs related to oral health, smoking and drinking status, and use of auxiliary oral hygiene devices including scaling. The predictiveness of the measures from these self-reported questions was assessed by logistic regression modeling using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) statistics, sensitivity, and specificity. RESULTS: The sensitivity, specificity, and AUC including all questions were 0.571, 0.768, and 0.781, respectively; the sum of sensitivity and specificity was 1.34. To gain robustness, a simplified predictive model was built with six questions. Its results were 0.536, 0.817, and 0.762 for sensitivity, specificity, and AUC, respectively. The sum of sensitivity and specificity was found to be 1.35. CONCLUSIONS: The self-reported questionnaire for periodontitis showed considerable validity, but further study is required to provide optimal validity and predictability.

Validity and reliability of a questionnaire for evaluating periodontal disease / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to develop a self-administered questionnaire survey to determine its validity and reliability as well as to improve the instructions for measurement of periodontal disease during oral examination for reliably calculating the prevalence of periodontal disease. METHODS: The data obtained was analyzed using SPSS 20.0 and the WINSTEPS program that employs the Rasch model to evaluate validity and reliability of the instrument. RESULTS: We developed a self-administered questionnaire survey consisting of 14 questions based on NHANES. We confirmed the reliability by testing and re-testing the questionnaire survey using selfadministered methods. The average Kappa index obtained was 0.73, which indicated a relatively high reliability. CONCLUSIONS: Reliability and validity of the self-administered assessment tool for periodontal disease developed for the local situation/circumstances of Korea is suitable to be applied for oral examination of a large population. Moreover, the questionnaire survey for periodontal disease could be used to acquire data for constructing a database for oral health policy development.

Relationship between periodontal status and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between periodontal health and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in a Korean population. METHODS: The Community Periodontal Index (CPI) data of 7,264 subjects, aged over 25 years, who participated in the Fourth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey was used to assess the periodontal status of the population. Severity of COPD in the subjects was classified according to the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) definition. RESULTS: Subjects with more severe COPD were more likely to have severe periodontal disease. After adjustment for gender, age, monthly income, education, economic activity, and occupation, the odds ratio of COPD was 1.18 (95% Confidence interval [CI], 0.63-2.21) for severe periodontal disease in the study sample. When stratified by smoking status, the odds ratio of current smokers was 0.92 (95% CI, 0.41-2.05) and that of non-smokers was 1.29 (95% CI, 0.64-2.59). CONCLUSIONS: Periodontal health was not significantly related to the severity of the COPD, even though smoking was a common risk factor. This is the first study examining the relationship between periodontal health and COPD in a Korean population. Studies that further investigate the causal relationship between the two are recommended.

Comparison between the National Oral Health Survey Systems of the United States and South Korea / 대한구강보건학회지

In Korea, two kinds of National oral health surveys have been conducted to develop various oral health indices during the past decade. The system still needs to be improved further in terms of quality control for the examination system, data management, personnel empowerment, etc. Therefore, this study compares the National Oral Health Survey system of the United States (US) with that of South Korea. The US national surveys related to oral health were set from the 1970s, whereas Korea's national surveys have been initiated only recently; consequently, the US system is well organized and systematically managed by the professional personnel in governmental institutes, such as the Division of Oral Health in Centers for Disease Control. Furthermore, this study examines the scope of the examiner training program, and the methods for developing and implementing a standardized examination environment, data quality control, a data input system with automatic error checking, and data back up in the US. Considering the various factors involved in conducting nationwide epidemiological surveys as mentioned above, the structure and implementation methods of oral surveys in Korea clearly need to be improved.

Impact of amalgam removal on urinary mercury concentration in children: a pilot study / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: This pilot study aimed to evaluate the effect of dental amalgam, a restorative material, on children by measuring the mercury concentration in the urine as well as the number of teeth filled with dental amalgam. METHODS: Twenty children enrolled in grades 1-4 of two elementary schools in Daegu participated in this study. One trained dentist performed oral examinations and removed amalgam restorations from the teeth with a high and low speed handpiece. In order to measure the urinary mercury concentrations, urine samples were collected from all participants at baseline and immediately and 24 hours after removal of the dental amalgam restorations. RESULTS: The mean number of teeth from which the amalgam restorations was removed was 9.8 while the mean urinary mercury concentrations at baseline, immediately, and 24 hours after removal of dental amalgam restorations were 2.66, 2.76, and 2.76 microg/g creatinine, respectively. The mean urinary mercury concentration increased consistently after amalgam restoration removal. For those participants whose removed amalgamated surfaces were more than 11, the mean urinary mercury concentration immediately after amalgam restoration removal and 24 hours after removal increased consistently but showed no significant difference. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that dental amalgam restoration was related to urinary mercury concentration, and these findings present a possibility of mercury accumulation in the body. Therefore, we suggest future longitudinal studies to ensure the safety of children exposed to mercury by establishing criteria for amalgam removal.

Prevalence of demand for dentures in Korean elderly receiving governmental support funds / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: This study was conducted to investigate the status of elderly dentures wearers and to understand the relationship between elderly welfare recipients and general elderly Koreans. METHODS: A total of 3,810 subjects (3,458 general elderly and 352 elderly welfare recipients) over 65 years who participated in the Forth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were examined. Oral examinations were conducted to ascertain those that were wearing dentures and those that needed dentures. A questionnaire measured chewing ability, concern about oral health, oral health behaviors, pronunciation ability and socio-demographic characteristics. The statistical analysis was done by using the SPSS 19.0 program. RESULTS: In the elderly welfare recipients, 28.2% was maxillary and 19.2% was mandible complete dentures and 36.0% had unmet denture treatment needs. In the general elderly, 21.7% was maxillary and 13.9% was mandible complete dentures and 24.3% had unmet denture treatment needs. The unmet denture treatment need in elderly welfare recipients was significantly higher than the general elderly after adjusting for other covariates. CONCLUSIONS: A denture service program is necessary for the elderly welfare recipients' oral health.