title: The evaluation of oral health-related factors on the quality of life of the elderly in Babol.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Considering an increase in elderly population in recent years, it has become necessary to pay attention to this group so that they can have a higher quality of life (QoL). Oral health is one of the factors affecting the QoL of the elderly.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of oral health on the QoL of the elderly population in Babol, Iran.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this study, we used the multi-stage cluster sampling technique to select 300 elderly subjects, over 65 years of age, living in Babol. Oral health-related QoL was evaluated by the Persian version of oral health impact profile (OHIP-14) questionnaire. Data were collected on gender, age, occupation, education, the date of the last dental visit, use of prosthetic appliances, and dental treatment needs, including the periodontal, prosthetic, and surgical needs, by interview and examination.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were analyzed with SPSS software program using Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age of the subjects was 71.4 ± 5.6 years, with 183 males (61%) and 117 females (39%). The mean score of OHIP-14 questionnaire was 22.4 ± 8.2, with a range of 5‒50. The highest score was achieved on the psychological discomfort domain. There was no significant difference in OHIP-14 scores according to gender, with significantly lower scores in subjects with academic education. The subjects wearing prosthetic appliances had lower OHIP-14 scores compared to those who did not wear prosthetic appliances. OHIP-14 scores were lower in the dentate individuals compared to the edentulous individuals. There was no correlation between the age and the OHIP-14 score.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In general, the results of the present study showed a moderate oral health-related QoL in the elderly living in Babol, who have orodental problems.
authors: Department of Oral Medicine, Faculty of Dentistry, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran.
authors: Mina
authors: M
authors: Motallebnejad
authors: Department of Prosthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran.
authors: Shervin
authors: S
authors: Mehdizadeh
authors: Department of Oral and Maxillofasial Medicine, Faculty of Dentistry, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol Iran.
authors: Nazanin
authors: N
authors: Najafi
authors: Department of Oral Medicine, Faculty of Dentistry, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran.
authors: Fatemeh
authors: F
authors: Sayyadi
keywords: Elderly; oral health; oral health impact profile-14 score; quality of life