Background: Self-rated oral health is a valid and useful summary indicator of overall oral health status and quality\r\nof life. However, few studies on perception of oral health have been conducted among Japanese young adults. This\r\nstudy investigated whether oral health behavior, subjective oral symptoms, or clinical oral status were associated\r\nwith self-rated oral health in Japanese young adults.\r\nMethods: This cross-sectional survey included 2,087 students (1,183 males, 904 females), aged 18 and 19 years, at\r\nOkayama University, Japan. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed and an oral examination was performed.\r\nResults: In a structural equation modeling analysis, the score of decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT)\r\nsignificantly affected self-rated oral health (p <0.05) and the effect size was highest. Malocclusion, subjective\r\nsymptoms of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) and stomatitis, and poor oral health behavior significantly\r\ninduced self-rated poor oral health with small effect sizes (p <0.05). Clinical periodontal conditions and Oral\r\nHygiene Index-simplified were not related to self-rated oral health.\r\nConclusion: Self-rated oral health was influenced by subjective symptoms of TMD and stomatitis, oral health\r\nbehavior, the score of DMFT, and malocclusion. The evaluation of these parameters may be a useful approach in\r\nroutine dental examination to improve self-rated oral health in university students
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