Relationship between oral health status and the frequency of oral health check-ups at the workplace

Abstract

We evaluated the effect of periodic oral health check-ups of 3,461 workers who were examined at least one time during the period 1993 to 2005. The subjects were placed in one of six groups according to their number of visits: 1, 2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, and 9 or more times. The subject's oral health status at the first visit was set as the baseline, and this was compared to their status at the final visit.
     Results showed that the number of subjects who had CPI (Community Periodontal Index) code 0 increased, as the number of check-ups increased, and that the maximum CPI code value decreased by the final visit. This improvement was seen clearly in the subjects who had more than 7 visits. On the other hand, the number of sound teeth decreased, while the number of missing and filled teeth increased by the final examination. However, the number of decayed teeth and the number of subjects with decayed teeth decreased by the final visit. Based on these results, we concluded that regular oral health check-ups are useful for maintaining the oral health of workers.