Oral healthcare visits among sexual minority adolescents ages 14–18, 2019, USA

Objective: Health disparities persist among sexual minority (SM) adolescents (i.e., bisexual, lesbian/gay) compared to heterosexual adolescents, however, research is limited on oral health. The purpose of this study was to examine reported recency of dental visits by sexual orientation among a national sample of adolescents. Methods: Data from the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey (n = 12,673 adolescents, 14–18 years old) were analyzed. We assessed dental care in the past 12 months or more based on sexual orientation (“lesbian/gay,” “bisexual,” “not sure”). Adjusted, sex-stratified, multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to determine conditional associations. Results: Bisexual boys (aRR:2.50), “not sure” boys (aRR:3.55), and “not sure” girls (aRR:2.32) were at increased relative risk for not going to the dentist compared to heterosexual adolescents. Conclusions: Findings indicate gaps in oral healthcare access among SM adolescents, specifically bisexual and not sure youth. Results can be used to increase access to preventive dental care among SM adolescents.