Table 1.

Characteristics of Patients with Diabetes (n = 927)

CharacteristicsTotal Response, N (%)
Gender
 Female527 (56.9)
 Male400 (43.1)
Age, years, mean (SD)54.63(14.6)
Ethnicity and race
 Non-Hispanic White581 (62.7)
 Black/African American147(15.9)
 Hispanic, Latino, Spanish origin142(15.3)
 Pacific Islander25 (2.7)
 Asian17(1.8)
 Other11 (1.2)
Education
 Never attended school or only attended kindergarten2(0.2)
 Grades 1 to 827(2.9)
 Grades 9 to 11146(15.7)
 Grade 12 or GED341 (36.8)
 College years 1 to 3207 (22.3)
 College 4 years or more130 (14.0)
 Masters53 (5.7)
 Doctoral/professional degree21(2.3)
Employment
 Employed266 (28.7)
 Self employed46 (5.0)
 Out of work for 1 year or more25(2.7)
 Out of work for less than 1 year7 (0.8)
 Homemaker73 (7.9)
 Student15 (1.6)
 Retired297(32.0)
 Unable to work195(21.0)
 Prefer not to answer3 (0.3)
Income
 $25000 or less312(33.7)
 $26000 to $35,000105 (11.3)
 $36000 to $50,000147 (15.9)
 $51000 to $75,00039 (15.0)
 $76000 to $100,00076 (8.2)
 $101000 to $150,00081 (8.7)
 $151000 to $200,00021 (2.3)
 $201000 or more15 (1.6)
 Don’t know/not sure7(0.8)
 Prefer not to answer24(2.6)
Marital status
 Married441 (47.6)
 Never married192 (20.7)
 Divorced129 (13.9)
 Widowed73 (7.9)
 A member of an unmarried couple56 (6.0)
 Separated31(3.3)
 Prefer not to answer5 (0.5)
Self efficacy
 Mean ± SD (range)23.04 ± 4.48 (4 to 29)
Diabetes type
 Type 195 (10.2)
 Type 2832 (89.8)
Diabetes treatment
 Yes917 (98.9)
 No10 (1.1)
Family history of diabetes
 Yes712 (76.8)
 No207 (22.3)
 Don’t know/not sure8 (0.9)
Diabetes education session in the past
 Yes468 (50.5)
 No455 (49.1)
 Prefer not to answer4 (0.4)
Healthcare provider recommended regulardentist visit
 Yes380 (41.0)
 No532 (57.4)
 Don’t know/not sure8 (0.9)
 Prefer not to answer7 (0.8)
Dental insurance
 Yes577 (62.2)
 No347 (37.4)
 Prefer not to answer3 (0.3)
Diabetes and periodontal disease knowledge and understanding scale
 Mean ± SD (range)5.79 ± 2.366 (0 to 10)
Dentist visit frequency
 Once a year200 (21.6)
 Twice a year393 (42.4)
 Once every 2 years52 (5.6)
 Only for emergency treatment69 (7.4)
 Years ago53 (5.7)
 More than 5 years ago114 (12.3)
 Never been18 (1.9)
 Prefer not to answer28 (3.0)
Brushing frequency
 Once a day331 (35.7)
 More than once a day487 (52.5)
 Once/twice a week59 (6.4)
Flossing frequency
 Never161 (17.4)
 Hardly ever204 (22.0)
 Once/twice a week176 (19.0)
 Once a day221 (23.8)
 More than once a day137 (14.8)
 Prefer not to answer28 (3.0)
  • SD, standard deviation; GED, General Equivalency Diploma.