Wealth index association with self-reported oral health between white and non-white older Brazilians

This cross-sectional study aimed to identify the association between self-reported oral health status and a wealth index among white and non-white older adults in Brazil. Data from individual assessments of 9,365 Brazilians aged 50 years or older were analyzed. Poisson regression models were performed to estimate the prevalence ratio between wealth index and self-reported oral health among whites and non-whites adjusted for intermediate and proximal determinants. The total prevalence of poor self-reported oral health on white and non-white individuals was 41.6% (95%CI: 40.0-43.4) and 48% (95%CI: 47.1-49.8) respectively. The adjusted analysis showed that, for whites, the wealth index is associated with self-reported oral health since individuals in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th quintiles have 25% (PR = 0.75; 95%CI: 0.65-0.88), 20% (PR = 0.80; 95%CI: 0.67-0.95), and 39% (PR = 0.61; 95%CI: 0.50-0.75) lower prevalence of poor self-reported oral health than those in the poorest quintile. For non-white individuals, the wealth index is associated with self-reported oral health only for those in the 5th quintile, with 25% (PR = 0.85; 95%CI: 0.72-0.99) lower prevalence of poor self-reported oral health than those in the poorest quintile. The wealth index showed different effects on self-reported oral health among whites and non-whites. Socioeconomic status indicators may reflect racial inequalities due to the historical legacy of institutional discrimination. This study highlights the importance of developing policies to combat racial inequities and how these can contribute to better oral health conditions for the older Brazilian population.

Quality of life and self-perceived health of adolescents in Middle School

PURPOSE

Quality of life and self-perception of health are useful indicators for children and adolescents, as they are associated with objective and subjective states of health, including physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and environmental aspects. This study aims to characterize the adolescents at a Brazilian private financing school and to analyze the association between quality of life, health self-perception, and the sociodemographic profile.

METHODS

This is a cross-sectional, observational study conducted with 124 elementary school students. The questionnaires of Characterization of the participants, Health Self-perception and Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory ™ (PedsQL™) were applied to the adolescents and, to the parents or guardians, the Brazil Economic Classification Criteria questionnaires and PedsQLTM.

RESULTS

The majority of the participants were female, belonged to economy class A, declared to have excellent health self-perception, and attributed a good score for their health. The majority of parents and adolescents evaluated positively the physical, psychosocial, and overall quality of life dimensions. Having a positive health self-perception increased the chances of having a good quality of life and the increase of one year in age decreased the chances of the adolescent having a positive quality of life assessment.

CONCLUSION

The study of adolescence is essential to broaden the understanding of aspects related to the quality of life, both in its physical and psychosocial dimension and to self-perception. This knowledge will provide adolescents with an incentive for their well-being, better performance of their activities, and greater preparation for adult life.