Spending for dental care since 1980: smaller pieces of a growing pie

Article Abstract:

A greater proportion of the US population visited the dentist in 1986 (57.1 percent) than in 1983 (55 percent), and the proportion continues to grow. At the same time, spending for health care is steadily increasing, and in 1989, $34.1 billion was spent on dental care. This amount is greater than the gross national product of many nations. However, spending for dental care has not increased as rapidly as has spending for health care overall: in the latter case, spending rose by more than 143 percent between 1980 and 1989, compared with spending for dental care, which rose 118 percent during the same period. The proportion of personal health care funds devoted to dental expenditures actually declined by 0.7 percentage points. A similar pattern exists when health care monies are adjusted for inflation and expressed as constant 1982 dollars. Per capita health care spending in the 1980s increased by 122.6 percent, while per capita spending for dental care only doubled. Thus, dental services are taking up an increasingly smaller part of the health care pie, even though more people than ever are visiting their dentists. This may reflect the overall better oral health of the population and the tendency of dentists to perform greater numbers of less costly diagnostic and preventive procedures. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Usage, Statistics, Dental care, Oral hygiene

---

Hepatitis B vaccination and infection among U.S. dentists, 1983-1992

Article Abstract:

The number of dentists infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV) decreased between 1983 and 1992, largely due to more vaccinations during this time. Reported HBV infection rates decreased from 14% to 9%. Since years of practice determined both hepatitis B vaccination and infection, policies towards ensuring the vaccination of all dentists early in their careers should be implemented.

Demographic aspects, Surveys, Dentists, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis B vaccine, Hepatitis B vaccines

---

Similar abstracts:

• Abstracts: Reforming the health care system. Underinsurance in America
• Abstracts: Women respond: leading health-care professionals answer questions on achieving success
• Abstracts: Interactions with oral contraceptives. Influence of oral contraceptives on drug therapy. Sex hormone-binding globulin-a surrogate marker for the prothrombotic effects of combined oral contraceptives
• Abstracts: The clinical importance of acquired abnormalities of platelet function. Thrombocytopenia and the neglected megakaryocyte
• Abstracts: A case report of giant cell arteritis of the uterus and adnexa. Angiosarcoma of the uterus: a case report

This website is not affiliated with document authors or copyright owners. This page is provided for informational purposes only. Unintentional errors are possible.