Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To develop a simple quantitative measure of dental health inequality.
METHOD: Define equality based on statistical theory and construct a formula to compare actual and theoretical disease distributions.
RESULT: A new index (DHII) is proposed, based on the ratio of the distribution of the actual disease to a (theoretical) Poisson distribution. An example using caries data is provided.
CONCLUSION: Use of DHII will allow quantitative measurement of dental health inequality.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 43-5 |
| Number of pages | 3 |
| Journal | Community Dental Health |
| Volume | 19 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Publication status | Published - Mar 2002 |
Keywords
- Binomial Distribution
- DMF Index
- Dental Care
- Dental Caries
- Health Services Accessibility
- Humans
- Models, Statistical
- Poisson Distribution
- Public Health Dentistry
- Socioeconomic Factors
