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PHOM Indicator Profile Report of Routine Dental Health Care Visits

Why Is This Important?

Regular dental visits are important in the prevention, early detection, and treatment of oral and craniofacial diseases and conditions for all ages. Adults need regular professional care to avoid tooth loss, the need for complex restorative treatment, and even systemic health problems. Even people without teeth need to be monitored regularly for oral health which may be affected by systemic conditions, medications, prosthetic devices, and exposure to tobacco. Infrequent use of dental services has been associated with poor oral health among adults.

Percentage of Adults Who Reported a Dental Visit in the Past Year, Utah and U.S., 1997-2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018

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Data Sources

  • Utah Data: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, Office of Public Health Assessment, Utah Department of Health
  • U.S. Data: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), Division of Behavioral Surveillance, CDC Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services

Data Notes

Age adjusted to U.S. 2000 population. U.S. data are the average of all states and the District of Columbia; they do not include U.S. territories. (Beginning in 2002 this is a core BRFSS question which is only asked in even years.) The data in this graph include estimates from the old landline-only methodology, and from the new methodology that includes both landline and cell phone respondent interviews along with a new weighting methodology called iterative proportional fitting, or raking. The new methodology utilizes additional demographic information (such as education, race, and marital status) in the weighting procedure. Both of these methodology changes were implemented to account for an increased number of U.S. households without landline phones and an under-representation of certain demographic groups that were not well-represented in the sample. More details about these changes can be found at: [https://ibis.health.utah.gov/pdf/opha/resource/brfss/RakingImpact2011.pdf].

Risk Factors

Risk factors that can necessitate more frequent dental visits include smoking and diabetes. In addition those with periodontal disease may need more frequent visits. "The ADA encourages people to work closely with their dentists to identify any potential risk factors that would determine the need for and frequency of follow up visits to enhance the outcomes of preventive care." [https://www.ada.org/en/press-room/news-releases/2013-archive/june/american-dental-association-statement-on-regular-dental-visits Link: American Dental Association, June 10, 2013]

How Are We Doing?

In 2018, 72.0% of Utah adults reported visiting a dentist or dental clinic in the past year (age-adjusted rate). This is down one percentage point from 2016, but is 3.3 percentage points higher than it was six years ago. Utah adults with higher incomes and more education were more likely to report a dental visit in the past year than those with lower incomes and less education. The percentage of adults reporting a visit gradually increased with age from 68.7% for those aged 18-34 years to 75.1 % for those aged 65 and older.

What Is Being Done?

The Utah Department of Health Oral Health Program current priorities include promoting fluoride and dental sealants, preventing tooth decay in young children, and encouraging annual dental visits for both children and adults.

Healthy People Objective: Increase the proportion of children, adolescents, and adults who used the oral health care system in the past year

U.S. Target: 49.0 percent

Date Indicator Content Last Updated: 10/26/2020


Other Views

The information provided above is from the Utah Department of Health and Human Services IBIS-PH web site (http://ibis.health.state.gov). The information published on this website may be reproduced without permission. Please use the following citation: " Retrieved Thu, 28 March 2024 19:24:54 from Utah Department of Health and Human Services, Indicator-Based Information System for Public Health Web site: http://ibis.health.state.gov ".

Content updated: Fri, 8 Jan 2021 16:09:20 MST