• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.12 no.6
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• pp.607-616
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• 2012

The purpose of this study was to examine the self-rated oral health status and oral health concern of 6,094 adults over the age of 19, which were both related to subjective oral health awareness, based on the second-year (2008) raw data of the 4th National Health and Nutrition Survey. 1. As for subjective oral health awareness, 49.4 percent replied they were in bad oral health when they were asked about self-rated oral health status. Regarding oral health concern, 62.6 percent answered they were sort of concerned about oral health. 2. As to oral health indexes by sociodemographic characteristics, there were statistically significant differences in oral health indexes according to gender, age, academic credential, monthly mean household income, frequency of eating between meals and toothbrushing frequency. Smoking made no statistically significant differences to oral health indexes (p<0.000). 3. Concerning self-rated oral health status by sociodemographic characteristics, no significant differences were found according to gender, age and academic credential, and there were statistically significant differences according to monthly mean household income and smoking (p<0.000), frequency of eating between meals (p<0.018), toothbrushing frequency (p<0.003). 4. In relation to oral health concern by sociodemographic characteristics, gender and smoking made no significant differences, and statistically significant differences were found according to age (p<0.003), academic credential, monthly mean household income, frequency of eating between meals and toothbrushing frequency (p<0.000). 5. In regard to the relationship between subjective oral health awareness and oral health indexes, none of the oral health indexes had a significant relationship to self-rated oral health status, and there were statistically significant differences in oral health concern according to functioning teeth index (p<0.011) and community periodontal index (p<0.017).