Impact of occupation on oral health outcomes following third molar surgery

Abstract

Context: The removal of third molar is advised in patients whose occupation precludes ready access to oral health care; however, there is a lack of directly applicable clinical research.Aims: The aim of this study is to assess the outcomes of impacted third molar removal on oral health-related quality of life in these patients.Settings and Design: The prospective study included 178 armed forces personnel who underwent the extraction of symptomatic impacted third molars at Military Dental Center over a 1-year period.Subjects and Methods: Oral health impact profile (OHIP-14) was utilized to analyze the outcomes before surgery and on postsurgical days 1, 7, and 14. Prevalence, extent, and severity scores were calculated.Statistical Analysis Used: The comparison of severity outcomes was analyzed by means of Friedman's test and Wilcoxon signed-rank test.Results: The present study revealed “painful aching in your mouth”, “uncomfortable to eat foods”, “diet been unsatisfactory,” “difficult to relax,” and “difficulty doing usual jobs” were reported “fairly often” or “very often” presurgery by 84%, 25%, 37%, 44%, and 17%, respectively. The median number of all 14 OHIP items reported “fairly often” or “very often” presurgery was 2 (IQ 1, 5.5). Prevalence, extent, and severity scores were the highest on postsurgical day 1 and decreased by postsurgical day 7 and 14. Comparison of severity outcomes revealed a statistically significant increase on postsurgical day 1 followed by significant reduction thereafter.Conclusions: Extraction of symptomatic impacted third molars significantly improve oral health-related quality of life in patients whose occupation dictate that they have to work in conditions isolated from expert treatment.