Social inequalities in tooth loss: A multinational comparison.

Objectives: To conduct cross-national comparison of education-based inequalities in tooth loss across Australia, Canada, Chile, New Zealand and the United States.

Methods: We used nationally representative data from Australia's National Survey of Adult Oral Health; Canadian Health Measures Survey; Chile's First National Health Survey Ministry of Health; US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey; and the New Zealand Oral Health Survey. We examined the prevalence of edentulism, the proportion of individuals having <21 teeth and the mean number of teeth present.