Comprehensive Oral Healthcare Improves Treatment Outcomes in Substance Abuse Patients

Objectives: Data gathered from a HRSA-funded workforce training program, including pre-treatment and post-treatment assessments of high-severity and chronic substance use disorder patients (SUDPs), demonstrated the effect of integrated comprehensive oral health care for SUD patients on SUD therapeutic outcomes. The main objective of the HRSA-funded grant was to train oral healthcare professionals capable to work with substance-use disorder treatment centers. After 1½ years into this training program, data gathered from First Step House revealed patients who received complementary comprehensive oral health care dramatic improvement on treatment outcomes.
Methods: After 1-2 months in treatment at First Step House, an all-male SUD treatment facility, 158 patients self-selected to participate in the program and receive complementary comprehensive dental care in conjunction with their SUD treatment. First Step House clients at intake for SUD treatment self-selected to receive complementary comprehensive dental care if they were successful in the program’s first 4-8 weeks. These patients received comprehensive dental care from University of Utah School of Dentistry dental students. SUD treatment outcomes were determined by measuring length of stay in program, completion of program, drug abstinence, homelessness, and employment.
Results: The treatment outcomes of SUDPs receiving dental care compared to matched control SUDPs who did not receive dental care were significantly improved as measured by: (i) a hazard ratio= 3.60 (2.40, 5.40) increase for completion of SUD treatment, (ii) an odds ratio at discharge= (a) 2.44 (1.66, 3.59) increase for employment, (b) 2.19 (1.44, 3.33) increase in drug abstinence, and (c) 0.27 (0.11, 0.68) reduction in homelessness. Identified variables did not contribute to the outcomes.
Conclusions: These data demonstrate that comprehensive dental care, integrated with SUD treatment, improves the factors strongly associated with long-lasting recovery from SUD.