Oral pain and associated factors among adolescents in northern Finland

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Our aim was to study the prevalence of oral pain and its association with perceived oral health and with proximal (individual health-related) and distal (sociocultural and environmental) risk factors among adolescents.STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional questionnaire survey.METHODS: The data were collected in 2001–2002 by questionnaires as part of the 1986 Northern Finland Birth Cohort Study. The number of eligible replies was 7,344 (response rate 80%) among 15/16-year-old adolescents and 6,985 (response rate 76%) among parents. Of the risk factors, sociocultural factors (distal) and unhealthy habits (proximal) were included. Logistic regression analyses were conducted with oral pain as the dependent variable. The independent variables were unhealthy diet, smoking, alcohol use, mother’s/father’s education, financial status, parents' attentiveness and perceived cavities.RESULTS: The best predictor of oral pain was perceived cavities. Girls and frequent users of alcohol were more likely to report oral pain than were boys and less frequent users of alcohol.CONCLUSIONS: Even though caries contributed to oral pain among adolescents, there were also other factors involved. Poor health habits such as smoking and alcohol consumption were more common among adolescents who experienced oral pain. Thus, an adolescent’s perceived pain should be treated seriously and be properly attended to by oral health personnel.