Korean J Psychosom Med.  2022 Jun;30(1):46-53. 10.22722/KJPM.2022.30.1.46.

Association of Suicidal Ideation With Dental Pain among Korean Adolescents

• Baek JW
• Lee KH
• Yang CM

• KMID: 2537042
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.22722/KJPM.2022.30.1.46

Abstract

Objectives
: This study aimed to assess the possible association of dental pain with suicidal ideation among adolescents by analysing data from the 2018 Korean Youth Risk Behavior Survey, a nationwide online survey.
Methods
: Of 62,823 adolescent middle and high school students in Korea, 60,040 participants were selected for analysis, after excluding cases with missing values. Participants were given a questionnaire about their self-evaluation of health including dental pain and suicidal ideation. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated the relationships between dental pain and suicidal ideation after controlling for potential confounding factors.
Results
: The proportion of Korean adolescents reporting suicidal ideation was 13.3%. The proportion of adolescents who experienced dental pain was 23.4%. Compared to adolescents who did not report dental pain, adolescents who reported experiencing dental pain were significantly more likely to experience suicidal ideation (OR=1.94, p<0.001). In two multivariate models, the relationships between dental pain and suicidal ideation (AOR=1.24, p<0.001) were statistically significant.
Conclusions
: Dental pain was associated with increased risk of suicidal ideation among Korean adolescents, even when controlling for sociodemographic factors and other health conditions. It is necessary to consider screening adolescent patients who present with dental pain for suicidal ideation.

Keyword

Dental pain; Suicidal ideation; Adolescent; Korean youth risk behavior Survey; Mental health