People would rather see a physician than a dentist when experiencing a long-standing oral ulceration. A population-based study in Spain

Background Primary care physicians have been reported to be the first choice for patients with oral ulcerations. This study investigates the health-seeking behaviour of lay public in Galicia (North-western Spain) if experiencing a long-standing oral ulceration. Material and Methods Cross-sectional population-based survey of randomly selected respondents conducted from March 1, 2015 to 30 June 2016. Results A total of 5,727 pedestrians entered the study (response rate: 53%), mostly in the 45-64 age group (30.2%; n=1,728), 47.7% of them (n=2,729) were males. Most participants (42.1%; n=2,411) reported to visit their dentist once a year and had secondary or compulsory education as their highes…