title: The effect of cognitive appraisal for stressors on the oral health-related QOL of dry mouth patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Dry mouth is very common symptom, and psychological factors have an influence on this symptom. Although the influence of emotional factor related to patients with oral dryness has been examined in previous studies, the cognitive factors have not been examined thus far.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of cognitive factors on patients with oral dryness.
  
  
  METHODS
  The participants were 106 patients complaining of oral dryness. They were required to complete a questionnaire measuring subjective oral dryness, oral-related QOL, cognition for stressors, and mood state.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Correlational analyses revealed that OHIP-14 is significantly related to oral dryness, appraisal for effect, appraisal for threat, and commitment. These correlations were maintained even after controlling for the influence of depression and anxiety. Using oral dryness, appraisal for effect, appraisal for threat, and commitment, cluster analysis was done and three clusters (cluster-1, severe oral dryness; cluster-2, positive cognitive style: cluster-3, negative cognitive style) were extracted. The results of ANOVA showed that the group with severe oral dryness (cluster-1) had a significantly higher score on OHIP-14 than the other two groups. There was no significant difference between the groups with positive (cluster-2) and negative (cluster-3) cognitive style.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although the group of patients with positive cognitive style complained of more severe oral dryness than the group with negative cognitive style, no significant difference was observed between these two groups in OHIP-14. These results indicate that cognitive factors would be a useful therapeutic target for the improvement of the oral-related QOL of patients with oral dryness.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Growth and Development, Division of Disease Control and Molecular Epidemiology, School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, Ishikari-Tobetsu, Hokkaido, Japan.
authors.forename: Hirofumi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Matsuoka
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Growth and Development, Division of Disease Control and Molecular Epidemiology, School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, Ishikari-Tobetsu, Hokkaido, Japan.
authors.forename: Itsuo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Chiba
authors.affiliation: School of Psychological Science, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sakano
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Tsurumi University School of Dental Medicine, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.affiliation: Division of Oral Medicine and Pathology, School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, Ishikari-Tobetsu, Hokkaido, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Abiko
keywords: Cognitive appraisal; Dry mouth; Health related QOL