Dental services utilization between 1977 and 1995 by Finnish adolescents of different socioeconomic levels.

Equal distribution of health care services has long been a major goal of health policy in the Nordic countries. According to these guidelines, every child is expected to have an examination and treatment at least every second year. The aim of this study was to analyze the trends and, in particular, the socioeconomic differences in dental visits between 1977 and 1995. The data were collected as part of a nationwide research program, the Adolescent Health and Lifestyle Survey, which began in 1977. Every second year a self-administered questionnaire was mailed to a representative sample of 14-, 16- and 18-year-old Finns. The sample sizes in the surveys varied from 2422 to 9556, making a total …