NYMC Student Theses and Dissertations

Date of Award

5-28-2025

Document Type

Doctoral Dissertation - Restricted (NYMC/Touro only) Access

Degree Name

Doctor of Public Health

Department

Public Health

First Advisor

Dr.Kenneth A. Knapp

Second Advisor

Dr.Elizabeth Drugge

Third Advisor

Dr. Parthener Pinder

Abstract

Purpose of the Study: This research investigates the relationship between vision impairment and oral health perceptions of older adults through analysis of nationally representative data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2015 and 2018. The study aims to explore whether vision impairment leads to worse oral health outcomes alongside evaluating how preventive dental visits and socioeconomic conditions impact these health disparities.

Methods: The study analyzed cross-sectional data from 2,692 older adults who were 65 years or older. The study used survey-weighted bivariate analyses and logistic regression models to examine how vision impairment affects self-rated oral health while controlling for age, gender, race/ethnicity, education level, marital status, household income, dental visit reasons, and health insurance status.

Results: Older adults with vision impairment had significantly lower odds of reporting good oral health (OR: 0.63, 95% CI: 0.44–0.91, p = 0.015). Preventive dental visits were strongly associated with better oral health perceptions (OR: 2.31, 95% CI: 1.72–3.11, p < 0.001). Education levels and income status together with racial/ethnic background heavily affected oral health disparities because people with higher education and income reported better oral health while Non-Hispanic Whites experienced better oral health than members of other racial/ethnic groups.

Conclusion: Research demonstrates substantial oral health inequities in visually impaired populations which require specialized interventions to improve dental health education and service accessibility. Healthcare policies should focus on increasing dental service availability for people with visual impairments while encouraging routine preventive dental visits and incorporating oral health approaches into disability and aging support services.

Keywords

Oral health, vision impairment, preventive dental care, health disparities.

Disciplines

Medicine and Health Sciences

Available for download on Saturday, May 30, 2026

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