Abstract
This study aimed to evaluate the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) and associated factors in the elderly. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 287 elderly of Cruz Alta, Brazil. The following variables were collected: age, sex, ethnicity, level of education, marital status, retirement, medical/dental history, smoking/alcohol exposure, oral hygiene habits, use and need of dental prosthesis, missing teeth, temporomandibular disorder symptoms (TMD), nutritional status, and halitosis. OHRQoL was assessed by Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14). The sample was categorized into low impact (sum scores ≤6) and high impact (sum scores ≥7). Associations were analyzed by Poisson regression with robust variation. Mean scores of OHIP-14 was 5.92±8.54. Divorced individuals and those who did not use dental floss presented 77% and 54%, respectively, higher prevalence ratio (PR) of having higher OHRQoL impact. Elderly that did not need dental prosthesis demonstrated a lower impact on OHRQoL (P<0.01). Elderly with TMD presented a higher PR of having higher OHRQoL impact (P<0.01). It was concluded that higher impact on OHRQoL was associated with marital status, non-users of dental floss and those with TMD. No need dental prosthesis were associated with lower impact on OHRQoL.
Highlights
It is well established that the elderly are more susceptible to new and repetitive episodes of oral diseases[1]
It was concluded that higher impact on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) was associated with marital status, non-users of dental floss and those with temporomandibular disorder symptoms (TMD)
It was concluded that a low impact on OHRQoL was detected among the elderly
Summary
It is well established that the elderly are more susceptible to new and repetitive episodes of oral diseases[1]. Dental practices should be conducted in order to reduce the consequences of these oral diseases and promote strategies for oral health maintenance, of which may enhance quality of life[2]. This is very important especially when it takes into account the demographic burden of the human aging, as the life expectance is increasing in the last decades, which is observed in Brazil[3]. Oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) is a multidimensional construction that involves subjective evaluation of oral health, functional limitation, pain, discomfort, physical disability, psychological disability, social disability, and handicap[4]. The same trend of results is demonstrated in smokers[7]
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