Associations between area-level disadvantage and DMFT among a birth cohort of Indigenous Australians

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dc.contributor.authorJamieson, L.
dc.contributor.authorDo, L.
dc.contributor.authorBailie, R.
dc.contributor.authorSayers, S.
dc.contributor.authorTurrell, G.
dc.date.issued2013
dc.description.abstractBACKGROUND Individual-level factors influence DMFT, but little is known about the influence of community environment. This study examined associations between community-level influences and DMFT among a birth cohort of Indigenous Australians aged 16–20 years. METHODS Data were collected as part of Wave 3 of the Aboriginal Birth Cohort study. Fifteen community areas were established and the sample comprised 442 individuals. The outcome variable was mean DMFT with explanatory variables including diet and community disadvantage (access to services, infrastructure and communications). Data were analysed using multilevel regression modelling. RESULTS In a null model, 13.8% of the total variance in mean DMFT was between community areas, which increased to 14.3% after adjusting for gender, age and diet. Addition of the community disadvantage variable decreased the variance between areas by 4.8%, indicating that community disadvantage explained one-third of the area-level variance. Residents of under-resourced communities had significantly higher mean DMFT (β = 3.86, 95% CI 0.02, 7.70) after adjusting for gender, age and diet. CONCLUSIONS Living in under-resourced communities was associated with greater DMFT among this disadvantaged population, indicating that policies aiming to reduce oral health-related inequalities among vulnerable groups may benefit from taking into account factors external to individual-level influences.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityLM Jamieson, LG Do, RS Bailie, SM Sayers, G Turrell
dc.identifier.citationAustralian Dental Journal, 2013; 58(1):75-81
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/adj.12017
dc.identifier.issn0045-0421
dc.identifier.issn1834-7819
dc.identifier.orcidJamieson, L. [0000-0001-9839-9280]
dc.identifier.orcidDo, L. [0000-0003-3684-9949]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/79604
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherAustralian Dental Assn Inc
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1003710
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/565260
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1025045
dc.rights© 2013 Australian Dental Association
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1111/adj.12017
dc.subjectIndigenous Australians
dc.subjectDMFT
dc.subjectdiet
dc.subjectarea-level factors
dc.titleAssociations between area-level disadvantage and DMFT among a birth cohort of Indigenous Australians
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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