In Australia, the major measures taken have improved the oral health over the long term. But, it has been indicated that the positive trends has slowly begun to head in the negative direction. The main reason may be the high dental cost in Sydney. In contrast, the trends in dental visiting pattern have generally been positive. The actual figures surveyed by Australian Institute of Health and Welfare are given below,
- The proportion of people aged 15 and over visiting dentist has increased from 56% in 1994 to 62% in 2010.
- Despite the growth, dental cost in Sydney remains a barrier for some people. From 1994- 2010, the proportion of the number of adults avoiding to make a dental visit has increased from 25% to 30%.
- Between 2011 to 2012, the number of dental practitioners employed has been increased from 18,100 to nearly 19,600.
- Men suffered from more untreated decay and gum disease than women, 28.2% when compared to 22.7% and 26.8% when compared to 19.0% respectively.
- Insured people had less number of untreated decay and gum disease than uninsured people, 19.4% when compared to 31.1% and 19.4% when compared to 27.0% respectively.
- Women had more missing teeth than men (5.7 and 4.8 teeth respectively) and adults with insurance were less impacted by this disease than those with no insurance (4.7 and 6.2 teeth respectively).
- Among adults without any natural teeth (edentulous), those aged 65 and over were less likely to be uncomfortable with their dental appearance (11.3%) than those aged 25–44 (75.2%)
These figures show how much improvement is still required regarding oral health in Australia and how many more people are still in need of help.
