抄録
Although common oral diseases are not life threatening, oral health may influence the overall wellbeing of individuals. The purpose of this study was to compare the impact of oral health conditions on the general health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) and the oral health-related quality of life (OHR-QOL) between patients attending dental care regularly and drop-outs from the dental treatment. From August, 2006 to September, 2006, a consecutive 4,317 subjects older than 40 years of age from 26 private practices in Japan were enrolled in this study. The subjects were requested to complete a questionnaire that included life style, HR-QOL and OHR-QOL instruments. Patient's self-assessment of HR-QOL was measured by the 8-item short form health survey questionnaire (SF-8), encompassing eight summary scales and two summary dimensions. GOHAI (General Oral Health Assessment Index) was used for the measurement of OHR-QOL. Oral health parameters were collected from the treatment records. A total of 3,334 subjects completed the baseline survey. One-year follow-up survey was performed using the same questionnaire and survey protocol from September 2007 to December 2007.
During the follow-up period, 65.0 % of individuals (2,168/3,334) attended the dental
office and regarded as regular attendant. Among regular attendant, 94.1 % (2,041/2,168) responded to the questionnaire survey. Individuals who did not show-up during the follow-up period were 1,166 (35.0 %), and regarded sporadic attendant. Sporadic attendant were mailed same questionnaire, and responded 369 (31.6 %). The younger individuals tend to become sporadic attendants. Subjects with more present teeth also showed the tendency to discontinue the dental treatment. Sporadic attendant showed improvement of OHR-QOL comparing with regular attendant. Improvement of OHRQOL of sporadic attendants may partially be due to the younger age and more present teeth number comparing regular attendants. Oral health demonstrated a significant association with the wellbeing of individuals through our baseline survey. Further empirical study is necessary to reveal the implications of the dental care on the quality of life.
