Oral and General Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) among Patients Undergoing Periodontal Treatment and Regular Supportive Periodontal Treatment (SPT)

Periodontitis often affects the quality of life (QoL) of patients. This study investigated the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of three categories of participants. These were, firstly, follow-up patients (FU), specifically periodontitis treated patients, who had undergone periodontal treatment and supportive periodontal treatment (SPT). Secondly, new patients, specifically patients being treated for periodontitis for the first time (NP). Thirdly, periodontally healthy patients or patients with only mild gingivitis (HG). Materials and Methods: In total 129 participants were recruited during this study; these consisted of 32 patients in the FU group, 62 patients in the NP group and 35 patients in the HG group. Each participant had accepted a periodontal examination and then completed a questionnaire that included demographic data and the various QoL instruments, these were the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP), the Oral Impacts on Daily Performance (OIDP), and World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF). Chi-square tests, ANOVA, and multivariable analysis were used to compare the difference among the three groups. Results: Among participants with ≥ 24 teeth, the OHIP scores of the NP group (30.38 ± 2.52) were significantly higher than those of the FU group (20.13 ± 3.60; p = .0142). When the OIDP results were considered, the score for the NP group (7.57 ± 1.43) was significantly higher than that for FU group (1.40 ± 2.04) (p = .0306). By way of contrast, among participants with ＜ 24 teeth, the OHIP scores of both the NP group (39.96 ± 3.52) and the FU group (32.69 ± 4.54) were significantly higher than those in HG group (4.21 ± 7.03; p = .0004). Conclusions: The outcome revealed that the OHRQoL of FU patients who possessed more than 24 teeth is superior to that of the NP group. Clinical Relevance: Periodontitis patients should receive treatment in order to preserve sufficient healthy teeth and SPT is likely to enhance their OHRQoL. (J Taiwan Periodontol, 21(1):12-22, 2016)