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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Reduce the proportion of older adults with untreated root surface decay — OH‑04 Data Methodology and Measurement

On this page:  About this objective  |  Methodology  |  History

About this objective

Data

Data Source:  National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), CDC/NCHS

National baseline: 29.1 percent of adults aged 75 years and over had untreated root surface decay in 2015-16

National target: 20.1 percent

Numerator
Number of adults aged 75 and over with root decay that have not been restored observed in at least 1 tooth.
Denominator
Number of adults aged 75 and over who have at least 1 permanent tooth present and valid codes for root decay on at least 1 tooth.
National target-setting method
Minimal statistical significance
National target-setting method details
Minimal statistical significance, assuming the same standard error for the target as for the baseline.
National target-setting method justification
Trend data were not available for this objective. The standard error was used to calculate a target based on minimal statistical significance, assuming the same standard error for the target as for the baseline. This method was used because it was a statistically significant improvement from the baseline.
National data collection frequency
Periodic

Methodology

Methodology notes

Untreated dental decay is defined as the presence of untreated tooth decay. Caries is the disease that causes tooth decay and can lead to cavities in teeth. This measurement focuses on root surface decay.

History

Comparable HP2020 objective
Retained, which includes core objectives that are continuing from Healthy People 2020 with no change in measurement.