Table 4.
Frequency and percentage of Oral health problems experienced during the previous 12 mo
| Variable | Age (y), n (%) | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–35 | 36–50 | 51–65 | p-value | Male | Female | p-value | |
| Dental problems during the past 12 mo | |||||||
| Biting difficulty | 238 (28.5) | 262 (38.2) | 320 (47.3) | < 0.0001 | 407 (49.6) | 413 (50.4) | 0.561 |
| Difficulty chewing food | 208 (24.8) | 297 (43.5) | 387 (54.0) | < 0.0001 | 425 (47.6) | 467 (52.4) | 0.458 |
| Speech/word pronouncing difficulties | 52 (6.5) | 106 (15.4) | 65 (8.9) | < 0.0001 | 111 (49.8) | 112 (50.2) | 0.725 |
| Dry mouth | 155 (19.6) | 85 (12.6) | 54 (8.1) | < 0.0001 | 144 (49.0) | 150 (51.0) | 0.975 |
| Felt embarrassed due to appearance of teeth | 257 (30.6) | 187 (27.6) | 155 (22.1) | < 0.0001 | 298 (49.7) | 301 (50.3) | 0.737 |
| Felt tense due to teeth or mouth | 354 (44.4) | 280 (40.9) | 243 (34.8) | < 0.0001 | 459 (52.3) | 418 (47.7) | 0.014 |
| Smiling avoidance because of concerns about teeth or mouth | 205 (25.5) | 172 (25.4) | 123 (18.1) | < 0.0001 | 224 (44.8) | 276 (55.2) | 0.056 |
| Sleep interruption | 129 (16.4) | 90 (13.2) | 115 (17.6) | 0.001 | 167 (50.0) | 167 (50.0) | 0.580 |
| Days off work | 165 (19.7) | 79 (11.7) | 63 (9.3) | 0.001 | 161 (52.4) | 146 (47.6) | 0.167 |
| Difficulty doing usual activities | 119 (14.8) | 104 (15.0) | 127 (18.3) | 0.001 | 159 (45.4) | 191 (54.6) | 0.208 |
| Felt less tolerant of spouse or close people | 52 (6.6) | 61 (8.1) | 69 (10.4) | 0.048 | 78 (42.9) | 104 (57.1) | 0.089 |
| Reduced tolerance of spouse or close friends | 104 (13.0) | 118 (17.3) | 100 (14.8) | 0.062 | 155 (48.1) | 167 (51.9) | 0.884 |