Even where needs are not significantly different across settings, an Australian survey
demonstrated a number of important trends: higher odds of ‘dental caries experience’ were
associated with age and having no oral hygiene assistance; higher odds of ‘missing teeth’
were associated with the type of disability, requiring a general anaesthetic for dental treatment, and both low and high carer-contact; finally, higher odds of having ‘filled teeth’
were associated with age, having no oral hygiene assistance and having high carer-contact
(Pradhan et al., 2009). This underlines the importance of high quality daily care as well as
regular dental care.