title: Oral health-related quality of life in patients with removable dentures.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine factors that affected oral health-related quality of life (Oral Health Related Quality of Life = OHRQoL) in patients with removable dentures (RD). Quality of life was evaluated by using the Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI). We analysed data of 250 patients aged 63 ± 11.6 years. After excluding patients lacking relevant analysis data, 243 patients remained in the study, including 129 males and 114 females. Relevant parameters for good OHRQoL were: patient satisfaction with their RD (r = -0.317), higher age (r = 0.222), greater number of remaining teeth (r = 0.357), higher income (r = 0.175), higher frequency of dental visits (r = -0.212), tobacco abstinence (r = -0.181), and residence in a rural area (r = -0.420). Also, marital status had an impact on OHRQoL. Widowed and married patients showed the highest values and unmarried patients the lowest. Frequently mentioned problem areas considered within the survey were: the patient's fear of further tooth loss, concerns about functional aspects such as the decrease in chewing efficiency and dissatisfaction with the aesthetics of the dental prostheses. The results showed that the OHRQoL is apparently not only influenced by dental factors, but also by psychosocial and economic factors, the relevance of which would have to be shown in further studies.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Dental Materials Science and Technology at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: Jutta
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pistorius
authors.forename: Jan G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Horn
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pistorius
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kraft
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003832:Denture, Partial, Removable / Q000523:psychology*; D004435:Eating; D004522:Educational Status; D004955:Esthetics, Dental; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D008409:Mastication; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011788:Quality of Life; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult