Oral Health Related Quality of Life in Relation to Socioeconomic and Life Style Behavior in Urban and Rural, Andhra Pradesh-A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Introduction: Over the past decade, there has been an explosion of interest in conceptualizing, developing and assessing the impact of oral health on life quality. Hence, the study aimed to assess the impact of oral health on quality of life in Rural (Ranga Reddy) and Urban (Hyderabad) subjects utilizing the oral health related quality of life (OHRQoL) instrument Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14). Methodology: Stratified random sampling procedure was employed, using OHIP-14 questionnaire and clinical examination, in Ranga Reddy randomly four mandals were selected from these revenue divisions and from each mandal two villages were selected randomly and Hyderabad four strata North, South, East, and West. Results: The study was conducted on 800 subjects. The mean age was 38.4 ± 14.3. The OHIP-14 mean score was 24.6 ± 10.23, which showed a relatively good score where the higher response was given to the physical pain, physical disability, psychological disability. There was a significant correlation between the OHRQoL and lifestyle factors (P < 0.05) where this indicates that the behavioral factors influence the quality of life, the tooth loss, and impairment. From a clinical perceptive, the presence of decayed teeth needing extraction or endodontic treatment were found to be the main factors affecting OHRQoL, since they are usually pain-related condition. Conclusion: Perceived dental needs and socio-economic status were found be possible predictors of OHRQoL.