Impact of Endodontic Disease on Oral Health‐Related Quality of Life in the Elderly

AIM: The silver tsunami poses a global healthcare challenge, and this study aimed to assess the impact of endodontic disease on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQOL) in an elderly population who received non-surgical root canal treatment (NSRCT). The appropriateness of the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-17) and General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI) as OHRQOL assessment tools for this population was also assessed. METHODOLOGY: Patients aged ≥ 65 years who received NSRCT were recruited. OHRQOL assessments were conducted using OHIP-17, GOHAI and an oral health perception questionnaire. The severity of impact was assessed by summing the numeric response codes for all questions, producing a total score for each participant potentially ranging from 0 to 68 for OHIP-17 and 0 to 48 for GOHAI, with higher scores indicating poorer OHRQOL. Potential influencing factors for OHRQOL scores were investigated. Internal consistency, concurrent validity and discriminant validity of both tools were evaluated. RESULTS: One hundred and twenty-two patients were recruited. The mean total OHIP-17 and GOHAI scores were 16.35 ± 11.81 (maximum possible score = 68) and 16.85 ± 7.04 (maximum possible score = 48) respectively. The percentage of patients reporting no impact was lower with GOHAI (0.8%) than OHIP-17 (9.8%). Multivariate analyses showed that higher OHRQOL scores were significantly associated with higher levels of education, full/part-time employment and more teeth that received NSRCT. Internal consistency was high for both tools. Concurrent validity assessment demonstrated a significant association of satisfaction with oral health for GOHAI, and perceived importance of keeping one's own teeth and perceived oral health for both OHIP-17 and GOHAI. Neither tool significantly correlated patient-reported impact with clinicians' assessment of oral health. CONCLUSIONS: In elderly patients who received NSRCT, OHRQOL is negatively associated with higher education level, being employed, and more teeth that received NSRCT. GOHAI appears more successful than OHIP-17 in detecting the impact of endodontic disease on OHRQOL.