{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,7]],"date-time":"2026-10-07T19:20:17Z","timestamp":1791400817200,"version":"4.3.3"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,16]],"date-time":"2026-01-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1768521600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100003593","name":"National Council for Scientific and Technological Development","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["APQ305806\/23-8"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["APQ305806\/23-8"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100003593","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJERPH"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Dental caries remains a major global public health problem characterized by pronounced social inequalities. This study aimed to identify, critically appraise, and synthesize the most recent evidence on the relationship between socioeconomic indicators and dental caries among adults aged 19\u201360 years, providing an updated systematic review that builds upon our previous reviews from 2012 and 2018. Reported following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, we conducted a systematic search of eight electronic databases for observational studies published between March 2017 and April 2024 (PROSPERO: CRD42017074434). Two independent reviewers performed study selection, data extraction, and risk of bias assessment using the Newcastle\u2013Ottawa Scale. Due to substantial methodological heterogeneity across the 22 included studies, a narrative synthesis was undertaken. The findings demonstrated a strong inverse association between socioeconomic position and caries experience. Lower income, lower educational attainment, and unemployment or employment in manual\/unskilled occupations were associated with a higher overall caries experience. Advanced analytical approaches in recent studies, including life-course, reinforced that education and income are key contributors of these oral health inequalities, with persistent social disadvantage conferring the greatest risk. In conclusion, dental caries in adults aged 19\u201360 years is a social condition reflecting the cumulative effects of socioeconomic inequality across the life course. Addressing adult dental caries requires integrated approaches that combine clinical prevention with social and public policies aimed at reducing structural inequalities.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph23010112","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,16]],"date-time":"2026-01-16T11:39:37Z","timestamp":1768563577000},"page":"112","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":4,"title":["Caries and Socioeconomic Factors in Adults (19\u201360 Years Old): An Updated Systematic Review of Observational Studies"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"23","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6488-0516","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria Aparecida Gon\u00e7alves de Melo","family":"Cunha","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Graduate Program in Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, MG, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1905-4124","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alex Junio Silva da","family":"Cruz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Graduate Program in Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, MG, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9072-3226","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Carolina","family":"Martins-Pfeifer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Integrative Global Oral Health, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0266-018X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Simone de Melo","family":"Costa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Dentistry, Universidade Estadual de Montes Claros, Montes Claros 39401-089, MG, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8794-5725","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mauro Henrique Nogueira Guimar\u00e3es de","family":"Abreu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Community and Preventive Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, MG, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,16]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100904","DOI":"10.1016\/j.identj.2025.100904","article-title":"Global Burden of Dental Caries from 1990 to 2021 and Future Projections","volume":"75","author":"Li","year":"2025","journal-title":"Int. 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