Comparative Study of Access to Oral Health Care for Precarious and Non-precarious Populations in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire

Abstract

The situation of insecurity resulting from precariousness raises concerns about the oral health of the victims. The objective of this study was to compare the dental status and the modalities of the use of oral care of people in precarious situations to those of non-precarious. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 256 users of the dental office of the University Hospital of Treichville, in precarious situation or not. Subjects in precarious situations were identified using a tracking tool to take into account the context of the intervention. The respondents were interviewed using a standardized questionnaire. The data collected made it possible to calculate percentages and comparisons of the modalities of oral health care use between "precarious" and "not precarious" using the Chi2 test. Subjects in precarious situations had more recourse to self-medication (84.6%) at first intention than subjects who were not precarious (p=0,011). Renunciation of oral health care was more common in the "precarious" group than in the "non- precarious" group (p=0,004). The number of missing teeth among people in precarious situations was twice as high as among "not precarious" subjects. On the other hand, the number of filled teeth (O) was 3 times higher in "not precarious" subjects than in "precarious" subjects. The results of this study show the need for awareness raising and the implementation of a social protection system guaranteeing greater accessibility to care for people in precarious situations and even for the population as a whole.