Shetty, Neeta and *, Kundabala M and *, Suprabha BS and Shenoy, Ramya (2017) Association of Level of Education and Utilization of Restorative Dental Care among Rural Women in India: Cross‑sectional Study. Indian Journal of Dental Research, 28 (6). pp. 642-645. ISSN 0970-9290

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Abstract

Background: The utilization of restorative dental care is very scarce in rural India. Association between level of education and health of a person has been well-documented in many countries and time periods with a range of potential factors shaping the connection between both. Objectives: This cross‑sectional survey was conducted to evaluate an association between the level of education (educational qualification) and utilization of restorative dental care among rural women associated with self‑help groups. Materials and Methods: A semi‑structured questionnaire was administrated to 660 rural women associated with self‑help group by trained research assistants. The 604 completed questionnaires were received and reviewed. The education levels were divided into three groups: Group 1 ‑ illiterates (17.2%), Group 2 ‑ school educated (69.4%), and Group 3 ‑ college educated (13.4%). Chi‑square test was applied to evaluate the utilization of dental services by rural women, and logistic regression was applied to evaluate the influence of their educational qualifications on utilization. Results: A total of 604 properly filled questionnaires out of 660 (91.51% response rate) were included in the analysis. Only 56.9% of the sampled rural women indicated that they have visited dentists earlier. The maximum number of individuals who have never visited the dentist belonged to illiterate group (55.7%), and the association was statistically significant (0.004) when compared with educated individuals. Conclusion: The results of this study concluded that the level of education has a significant influence on the utilization of dental care.

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