Wolf, E., Månsson, S., Wallin, L., & Priebe, G.2021-11-042021-11-042021Wolf, E., Månsson, S., Wallin, L., & Priebe, G. (2021). Child Sexual Abuse—Challenging Conditions for Adult Oral Health: A Qualitative Study. JDR Clinical & Translational Research, 23800844211053775.https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/23800844211053775http://hdl.handle.net/11212/5262The aim was to analyze perceptions of oral health in adults who have been exposed to child sexual abuse. Eleven participants (10 women), 19 to 56 y of age, who had experienced sexual abuse as children were purposively selected and interviewed in-depth. The participants were encouraged to describe how they perceived the effect of the sexual abuse on their oral health as adults. The interviews were recorded digitally and transcribed verbatim. The collected material was analyzed according to qualitative content analysis. The theme “challenging conditions for maintaining oral health” was identified, comprising 2 categories: first, “the emotional significance,” with the subcategories 1) emotional barriers and 2) powerful relief, and second, “the obstacles to oral health,” with the subcategories 1) daily selfcare with complications and 2) dental appointments with difficulties. The findings indicate that the experience of sexual abuse during childhood can have a negative impact on oral care in adulthood. The informants stated that oral health was of utmost importance but also associated with strong emotions. There were obstacles to maintenance of oral health that were difficult to surmount.enInternational ResourcesSwedenoral healthchild abuse survivorsdental feardental careaccess to careanxietyArticle