title: The impacts of oral health on quality of life in working adults.
abstract: This study investigated the impacts of oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) on daily activities and work productivity in adults. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a supermarket chain in the state of São Paulo, which included 386 workers, age-range 20 - 64 years. Participants were examined for oral disease following WHO recommendations, and the oral health impact profile (OHIP) assessment was used to determine OHRQoL. Demographic, socio-economic, use of dental services, and OHRQoL data were obtained. Answers to the OHIP were dichotomized into no impact and some impact, and the relationship to OHRQoL was determined. Poisson regression with robust variance was performed using SPSS version 17.0. Dimensions with highest OHIP scores were physical pain and psychological discomfort. Sex (male: PR = 0.55, 95% CI 0.38 - 0.80), lower family income (PR = 1.49, 95% CI 1.04 - 2.12), visiting a dentist due to pain (PR = 2.14, 95% CI 1.57 - 3.43), tooth loss (PR = 1.59, 95% CI 1.09 - 2.32), and needing treatment for caries (PR = 1.59, 95% CI 1.09 - 2.32) were most likely to impact OHRQoL. Therefore, socioeconomic and demographic status and use of dental services impacted OHRQoL. These results indicate that oral health promotion strategies should be included in work environments.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Dentistry, Piracicaba Dental School, Universidade Estadual de Campinas - UNICAMP, Piracicaba, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marilia Jesus
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Batista
authors.affiliation: Oral Health, Secretaria Municipal de Saúde, Piracicaba, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lílian Berta Rihs
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Perianes
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil.
authors.forename: Juliana Balbinot
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Hilgert
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil.
authors.forename: Fernando Neves
authors.initials: FN
authors.lastname: Hugo
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Dentistry, Piracicaba Dental School, Universidade Estadual de Campinas - UNICAMP, Piracicaba, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maria da Luz Rosário de
authors.initials: Mda L
authors.lastname: Sousa
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D001938:Brazil; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003731:Dental Caries; D003752:Dental Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016272:Occupational Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009909:Oral Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011788:Quality of Life; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D016388:Tooth Loss; D014098:Toothache; D055815:Young Adult