Association Between Dental Caries and Unemployment Among U.S. Adults with a History of Illicit Drugs

<b>Objectives:</b> This study aims to explore the relationship between dental caries and unemployment among U.S. adults who have engaged in illicit drug use, such as cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine. <b>Methods:</b> The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2015-2018) data were analyzed. The independent variable was severe dental caries (defined as DMFT > 13.99), and the dependent variable was employment status. The sample was categorized into non-users, current users (used in the past year), and former users (used prior to the past year). Covariates included age, education, race, gender, smoking status, family income-to-federal poverty level ratio, and health insurance status. Logistic regression with survey weights was applied to assess associations between severe dental caries and employment status. <b>Results:</b> The total sample (n = 5476) represented 131,848,604 U.S. adults aged 18-59 years, with 4% current users and 12% former users of the specified drugs. Among current users, those with severe caries had higher odds of unemployment (OR = 2.6, <i>p</i> = 0.025) compared to those without severe caries. No significant association was found between severe caries and employment status among former users after controlling for covariates. <b>Conclusions:</b> The study underscores a significant association between severe dental caries and unemployment among U.S. adults who have used illicit drugs in the past year. These findings suggest a potential need for targeted oral health interventions in this population to improve economic well-being. Future research should focus on longitudinal studies to establish causality and explore mechanisms through which dental health may impact employment prospects.