Page 17 - Petelin, Ana. 2024. Ed. Zdravje delovno aktivnih in starejših odraslih | Health of the Working-Age and Older Adults. Zbornik prispevkov z recenzijo | Proceedings. Koper: University of Primorska Press

many as 68% of American adults aged 30 years or older do not floss as recom-
mended. In Slovenia, according to the data from our study, this figure is 83% of
adults between the ages of 18 and 74.
The results of our study show that a larger proportion of women and 55–74
year olds use interdental brush. The use of interdental brush was not depend-
ent on education or living environment. We also found that a larger proportion
of women, younger adults aged 18–44 years, people with higher levels of edu-
cation and people from urban areas used the tongue scraper regularly or occa-
sionally. Prevalence studies on the use of dental care appliances are very rare,
and to our knowledge there are no studies that can be compared with our stud-
ies on the use of interdental brushes and tongue scrapers.

Conclusions
Effective measures to prevent dental disease include tooth brushing at least 17
twice a day for at least two minutes with fluoride toothpaste, brushing once a
day with interdental brushes and/or dental floss and tongue scraping once a
day. It is also important to sensitise the target population to the importance of
dental hygiene, depending on age, education and living environment.
The results of our study are a step towards reducing the burden of den-
tal and oral diseases and costs in the (dental) health care system. An important
challenge for the future is the continuous monitoring of oral health and the
dental healthcare system in Slovenia based on oral health indicators in accord-
ance with international recommendations, which will facilitate the planning of oral hygiene and the use of fluoride toothpastes in adults in slovenia in 2019
appropriate and effective programmes to improve oral health. We should pro-
mote activities to improve oral health and raise awareness of the importance of
oral health in the lives of individuals. Oral health is an important part of gen-
eral health and has been shown to contribute to a better quality of life.
The results and recommendations to improve oral health are a step to-
wards reducing the burden of oral diseases and costs in the (dental) healthcare
system.

Acknowledgements
The research was supported by the Slovenian Research Agency (research
core funding No. P3-0429, Slovenian Research Programme for Comprehensive
Cancer Control SLORApro and No. V3-1715, Analysis of Oral Health Indicators
and Oral Health Promotion of Slovene Population).

References
BOURGEOIS, D. M., LLODRA, J. C., CHRISTENSEN, L. B., PITTS, N. B.,
OTTOLENGHI, L. and SENEKOLA, E., 2008. Health surveillance in Eu-
rope. Oral health interviews and clinical surveys: guidelines. Lyon: Uni-