General health and well-being among primary care patients aged 75+ years: associations with living conditions, oral health and dependency

Abstract

Objective: Our aim was to examine the associations between general health and well‐being with living conditions, oral health and degree of dependency. Methods: We surveyed people from a primary care service and collected data on sociodemographic characteristics, general health, health utility, well‐being, activities, living conditions and oral health impact. Results: Overall, 459 participated (78% response rate). Poor general health was associated with decreased instrumental activities of daily living scores (18% of those with poor general health were independent vs 60% with good general health). Greater oral health impact was also related to poor general health. Health utility was lower for some dependency, for renting and oral health impact. Well‐being was also lower for some dependency, for renting, not speaking English and oral health impact. Conclusion: In addition to the well‐known association of poor general health with dependency, our results also illustrate the potential importance of living conditions and oral health.