LAUSR

OBJECTIVE Health disparities persist among sexual minority (SM) adolescents (i.e., bisexual, lesbian/gay) compared to heterosexual adolescents, however, research is limited on oral health. The purpose of this study was to examine reported recency of dental visits by sexual orientation among a national sample of adolescents. METHODS Data from the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey (n = 12,673 adolescents, 14-18 years old) were analyzed. We assessed dental care in the past 12 months or more based on sexual orientation ("lesbian/gay," "bisexual," "not sure"). Adjusted, sex-stratified, multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to determine conditional associations. RESULTS Bisexual boys (aRR:2.50), "not sure" boys (aRR:3.55), and "not sure" girls (aRR:2.32) were at increased relative risk for not going to the dentist compared to heterosexual adolescents. CONCLUSIONS Findings indicate gaps in oral healthcare access among SM adolescents, specifically bisexual and not sure youth. Results can be used to increase access to preventive dental care among SM adolescents.