Table 8.
Participants’ awareness of the need for regular dental visits
| Do you think that a regular dental visit is needed for everybody? | No | (n = 37) (%) | Yes | (n = 386) | p value | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age category (years) | ||||||
| 16–20 | 2 | 5.4 | 12 | 3.1 | ||
| 21–40 | 11 | 29.7 | 144 | 37.4 | ||
| 41–60 | 16 | 43.2 | 191 | 49.6 | p = 0.473 | −0.003 to 0.001 |
| 61–80 | 8 | 21.6 | 38 | 9.9 | ||
| Gender | ||||||
| Male | 21 | 56.8 | 131 | 33.9 | p = 0.009 | 0.018 to 0.131 |
| Female | 16 | 43.2 | 255 | 66.1 | ||
| Ethnicity | ||||||
| Sinhala | 37 | 100.0 | 346 | 89.6 | ||
| Tamil | 0 | 0.0 | 9 | 2.3 | ||
| Muslim | 0 | 0.0 | 31 | 8.0 | p = 0.033 | 0.004 to 0.104 |
| Education level | ||||||
| Primary education | 3 | 8.1 | 23 | 6.0 | ||
| Up to grade 8 | 9 | 24.3 | 29 | 7.5 | ||
| O/L | 16 | 43.2 | 156 | 40.4 | p = 0.025 | 0.004 to 0.066 |
| A/L | 7 | 18.9 | 139 | 36.0 | ||
| Tertiary education | 2 | 5.4 | 39 | 10.1 | ||
| Monthly income | ||||||
| <10,000/= Rs | 8 | 21.6 | 48 | 12.4 | ||
| 10,000/= −20,000/= Rs | 7 | 18.9 | 90 | 23.3 | ||
| 20,000/= −30,000/= Rs | 13 | 35.1 | 111 | 28.8 | p = 0.702 | −0.020 to 0.029 |
| 30,000/= −40,000/= Rs | 4 | 10.8 | 77 | 19.9 | ||
| >40,000/= Rs | ||||||
Females were more aware of the need for regular dental visits by all individuals and the results were statistically significant
Participants of Sinhala nationality and with higher levels of education were more aware of the fact and the results were statistically significant