Enterogenous extra-oral halitosis has a more severe impact on quality of life in females compared to males.

Abstract

Some studies have examined the impact of intra-oral halitosis on quality of life (QOL), but the impact of enterogenous extra-oral halitosis (EOH) on QOL has not been previously studied. We conducted a retrospective analysis of data from 88 patients with enterogenous EOH who visited our online halitosis clinic. A specialized halitosis associated life-quality test (HALT) questionnaire was used to assess QOL of these patients. Spearman correlation analysis was performed to investigate the relationship between HALT score and age. We found that 21 (23.86%) patients were male and 67 (76.14%) patients were female. HALT scores in females were significantly higher than in males (57.6 ± 13.6vs.45.5 ± 11.9,P< 0.001). Additionally, 13 of the 20 items of the HALT questionnaire showed significant differences between the sexes. No correlation was identified between HALT score and age. Therefore, we conclude that: (1) enterogenous EOH has a more severe impact on QOL in females compared to males. (2) More females with EOH visit the offline halitosis clinic compared to males. (3) The QOL of patients with enterogenous EOH does not decline with age.