More than half of the seniors surveyed faced a number of barriers to seeing an oral health professional, and expense was the most serious obstacle. For the recently retired, living on a fixed income was a major reason for citing the cost of dental care as a barrier.

For seniors over the age of 75, lack of transportation and anxiety were also listed as barriers to dental care. “As the loss of driving ability increases with age, so, too, does the need for transportation assistance to the dentists. And in rural areas, the dentists may be more than an hour away,” Kimberly Zittel-Palamara, study author, said in a prepared statement. “This generation of seniors also remembers a time when going to the dentist was associated with painful procedures without anesthesia, resulting in more anxiety about going to the dentist.” Zittel-Palamara added.

The study results were recently presented at the International and American Association of Dental Research General Session in Baltimore.

--Nick Olsen