Reliability, measurement error and minimum detectable change in mobility measures: a cohort study of community-dwelling adults aged 50 years and over in Ireland.

Objective: To estimate the effects of repeat assessments, rater and time of day on mobility measures and to estimate their variation between and within participants in a population-based sample of Irish adults aged ≥50 years.

Design: Test-retest study in a population representative sample.

Setting: Academic health assessment centre of The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA).

The contributions of paradata and features of respondents, interviewers and survey agencies to panel co-operation in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe.

This paper deals with panel cooperation in a cross-national, fully harmonized face-to-face survey. Our outcome of interest is panel cooperation in the fourth wave of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). Following a multilevel approach, we focus on the contribution of at three different levels: fieldwork strategies at the survey agency level, features of the (current) interviewer and paradata describing respondent interview experience from the previous wave.

Stereotyping across intersections of race and age: Racial stereotyping among White adults working with children.

This study examined the prevalence of racial/ethnic stereotypes among White adults who work or volunteer with children, and whether stereotyping of racial/ethnic groups varied towards different age groups. Participants were 1022 White adults who volunteer and/or work with children in the United States who completed a cross-sectional, online survey. Results indicate high proportions of adults who work or volunteer with children endorsed negative stereotypes towards Blacks and other ethnic minorities.

Gain a child, lose a tooth? Using natural experiments to distinguish between fact and fiction.

Background: Dental diseases are among the most frequent diseases globally and tooth loss imposes a substantial burden on peoples' quality of life. Non-experimental evidence suggests that individuals with more children have more missing teeth than individuals with fewer children, but until now there is no causal evidence for or against this.

Methods: Using a Two-Stage Least Squares (2SLS) instrumental variables approach and large-scale cross-sectional data from the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (study sample: 34 843 non-institutionalised individuals aged 50+ from 14 European countries and Israel; data were collected in 2013), we investigated the causal relationship between the number of biological children and their parents' number of missing natural teeth.

Cognitive determinants of healthcare evaluations - A comparison of Eastern and Western European countries.

Knowing the public opinion of healthcare is essential when assessing healthcare system performance; but little research has focussed on the links between the public's general attitude to the healthcare system and its perceptions and expectations of specific healthcare-related aspects. Using data from the fourth round of the European Social Survey 2008/09, we explore the cognitive determinants of global evaluations of the healthcare system in 12 Eastern and 16 Western European countries. We find that healthcare evaluations follow a coherent cognitive reasoning.

Long-term Care Provision and the Well-Being of Spousal Caregivers: An Analysis of 138 European Regions.

Objectives: The individual burden of caring for one's relatives not only depends on care characteristics but is also related to contextual factors. The objective of this study is to determine whether regional formal long-term care provision is linked to the well-being of spousal caregivers introducing the concept of "control" as central pathway to explain this link.

Method: We applied multilevel analysis using data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) from over 29,000 Europeans and 1,800 spousal caregivers located in 138 regions in 11 countries to analyze the effects of regional contexts on caregiver well-being.

Validity of Self-Rated Memory Among Middle-Aged and Older Chinese Adults: Results From the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS).

Memory self-ratings are often used in primary care practice and social surveys due to its relative ease of administration. Yet their usefulness to accurately measure individuals' memory-related cognitive function is largely unknown. This article assesses the construct validity of self-rated memory for measuring memory-related cognitive function among middle-aged and older adults (45+ years) in China using a national sample ( = 13,690) from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study.

Predicting Romantic Interest at Zero Acquaintance: Evidence of Sex Differences in Trait Perception but Not in Predictors of Interest.

We evaluated five competing hypotheses about what predicts romantic interest. Through a half-block quasi-experimental design, a large sample of young adults (i.e.

Long-term health consequences of recessions during working years.

Economic crises may have severe consequences for population health. We investigate the long-term effects of macroeconomic crises experienced during prime working age (20-50) on health outcomes later in life using SHARE data (Survey of Health Aging and Retirement in Europe) from eleven European countries. Analyses are based on the first two waves of SHARE data collected in 2004 and 2006 (N = 22,886) and retrospective life history data from SHARELIFE collected in 2008 (N = 13,732).

Disparity in dental out-of-pocket payments among older adult populations: a comparative analysis across selected European countries and the USA.

Background: The current study addresses the extent to which diversity exists in dental out-of-pocket (OOP) payments across population subgroups within and between the USA and selected European countries. This represents the final paper in a series in which the previous two papers addressed diversity in dental coverage and dental utilisation, respectively, using similar data and methods.

Method: We used data from the 2006/2007 Health and Retirement Study (HRS) and from the 2004-2006 Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) for respondents ≥51 years of age.

Differences in Subjective Well-being Between Older Migrants and Natives in Europe.

This study examines disparities in subjective well-being (SWB) among older migrants and natives across several European countries using data from the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). Our results show a significant SWB gap between migrants and non-migrants that diminishes with increasing age. While migrants from Northern and Central Europe have similar SWB levels as natives, Southern European, Eastern European, and Non-European migrants have significantly lower levels of SWB than the native population.

Valuing the Clinical Effectiveness of Therapeutics.

Objective: This second article of a series of four is aimed to inform dental practitioners about the relevance to provide more formal analysis of economic resources when helping patients make clinical decisions.

Methods: The following methods of health economic evaluation are described: Cost-effectiveness-analysis (CEA), cost-utility-analysis (CUA) and cost-benefit-analysis (CBA). CEA compares the effectiveness of different interventions usually based on specific clinical outcome measures, for example pocket depth reduction.

Causal inference from observational data.

Randomized controlled trials have long been considered the 'gold standard' for causal inference in clinical research. In the absence of randomized experiments, identification of reliable intervention points to improve oral health is often perceived as a challenge. But other fields of science, such as social science, have always been challenged by ethical constraints to conducting randomized controlled trials.

The risk of bias of animal experiments in implant dentistry: a methodological study.

Objectives: To evaluate the risk of bias (ROB) in reports of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of animal experiments published in implant dentistry, and to explore the association between animal experiment characteristics and ROB.

Material And Methods: We searched the MEDLINE (via PubMed), SCOPUS and SciELO databases from 2010 to March 2015 for reports of RCTs of animal experiments published in implant dentistry. We evaluated independently and in duplicate the ROB of these experiments by the use of a tool specifically developed to evaluate ROB in animal studies, the SYRCLE's tool.

A comparison of tooth retention and replacement across 15 countries in the over-50s.

Objectives: Oral diseases are still among the most common chronic diseases globally with substantial detrimental impact especially on elderly people's health and well-being. However, limited evidence exists on international variation in the oral health status of the older population. We aimed to examine international variation in tooth loss and tooth replacement in the general population aged between 50 and 90 years.

Disparity in dental attendance among older adult populations: a comparative analysis across selected European countries and the USA.

Background: The current study addresses the extent to which diversity in dental attendance across population subgroups exists within and between the USA and selected European countries.

Method: The analyses relied on 2006/2007 data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) and 2004-2006 data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) in the USA for respondents≥51 years of age. Logistic regression models were estimated to identify impacts of dental-care coverage, and of oral and general health status, on dental-care use.

Global Economic Impact of Dental Diseases.

Reporting the economic burden of oral diseases is important to evaluate the societal relevance of preventing and addressing oral diseases. In addition to treatment costs, there are indirect costs to consider, mainly in terms of productivity losses due to absenteeism from work. The purpose of the present study was to estimate the direct and indirect costs of dental diseases worldwide to approximate the global economic impact.

Dyadic fertility decisions in a life course perspective.

This paper focuses on how couples arrive at joint decisions with regard to fertility behaviour. We build upon previous work on decision rules that couples might apply as heuristics in order to arrive at joint action in cases in which partners' fertility preferences differ. Previous research found either stronger effects of women's desires or symmetrical effects of both spouses' desires and net benefits associated with (further) children on proceptive behaviour.

Mothering alone: cross-national comparisons of later-life disability and health among women who were single mothers.

Background: Single motherhood is associated with poorer health, but whether this association varies between countries is not known. We examine associations between single motherhood and poor later-life health in the USA, England and 13 European countries.

Methods: Data came from 25 125 women aged 50+ who participated in the US Health and Retirement Study, the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing and Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe.

Cost-effectiveness of non-surgical peri-implantitis treatments.

Aim: The purpose of the present study was to assess the cost-effectiveness of various alternatives of non-surgical peri-implantitis treatment.

Materials And Methods: A decision analytical model was constructed and populated with parameter estimates from recent literature for reduction in pocket probing depth (PPD) in response to eight different treatment alternatives. A micro-costing approach combined with an online expert survey was applied to simulate a decision-making scenario taking place in Germany.

Is the evaluation of risk of bias in periodontology and implant dentistry comprehensive? A systematic review.

Background/objective: The objective of this study was to assess how authors of systematic reviews (SRs) with meta-analyses published in periodontology and implant dentistry evaluate risk of bias (ROB) in primary studies included in these reviews.

Material/methods: A literature search for SRs with meta-analyses was performed in PubMed and Cochrane library databases up to July 20th 2014. The reference lists of included articles were screened for further reviews.

Direct and indirect effects of unilateral divorce law on marital stability.

Previous research examining the impact of unilateral divorce law (UDL) on the prevalence of divorce has provided mixed results. Studies based on cross-sectional cross-country/cross-state survey data have received criticism for disregarding unobserved heterogeneity across countries, as have studies using country-level panel data for failing to account for possible mediating mechanisms at the micro level. We seek to overcome both shortcomings by using individual-level event-history data from 11 European countries (SHARELIFE) and controlling for unobserved heterogeneity over countries and cohorts.

Cost-related dental non-attendance in older adulthood: evidence from eleven European countries and Israel.

Background: Although relevant for health policy, so far only little is known about the extent to which persons avoid dental attendance because of associated costs.

Objectives: To examine the cost-relatedness of dental non-attendance in various older adulthood populations.

Material And Methods: Secondary analyses were conducted of data from wave 1 of the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), which includes unique information on recent dental non-attendance and care foregone due to costs by persons aged 50+ from eleven European countries and Israel.

Provider payment bares teeth: dentist reimbursement and the use of check-up examinations.

Oral diseases are one of the most common diseases globally, yet maximizing health benefits from available resources continues to be a pivotal challenge. Similar to recall appointments in many other medical settings, dental check-up examinations are an essential element of regular treatment. Check-ups are important for ensuring good health but their frequent consumption also implies substantial aggregate health care costs.