The need to use patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) is increasingly recognised. Patients satisfaction and oral health-related quality of life are two such measure . The main aim of this study was to evaluate the level of association between patients’ denture satisfaction and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in edentate patients, and to identify the determinants of satisfaction that best predict OHRQoL.
What did they do
The data was obtained from participants in a randomised controlled trail (RCT) where they received either conventional mandibular dentures (CD, n=128) or overdentures (IOD, n=127) retained by ball attachments on two implants Switzerland), both opposed by new conventional maxillary dentures. Before provision of new dentures and at the 6- and12-month follow-up visits, participants underwent a series of assessments, including oral health-related quality of life (using Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-20) questionnaire ) the and denture satisfaction, using the McGill Denture Satisfaction Instrument. Simple linear and multiple linear regression analyses were performed to statistically analyse the relationship.
What did they find
- Data for 198 patients was included in the analysis
- All aspects of satisfaction were highly associated with OHRQoL except for ease of cleaning, which did not reach statistical significance (P = .09)
- When the combined effect of all factors was assessed, only two variables of denture satisfaction ratings were significantly associated with OHRQoL: chewing ability (P = .005) and oral condition (P = .002). These two variables explained 46.4% of the variance in the OHIP change scores. This association varied with time, but the variables of importance remained the same.
- Type of treatment, gender, age and other socio-demographic variables were not significantly associated with improvement in OHRQoL once their effects were combined with denture satisfaction ratings.
The authors concluded
Within the limitations of this study, a highly positive association exists between oral health-related quality of life and denture satisfaction. Chewing ability and oral condition are the determinants of denture satisfaction best associated with OHRQoL, predicting 46.4% of its improvement following a treatment.
Comment
The study has a good discussion of the questions raised by this research and raises the question as to whether
since only two factors were significant, it could be questioned whether or not the denture satisfaction questionnaires should be revised to include fewer questions, which would make it less cumbersome for use in clinical settings.
The issue of how generalisable these findings these results are was also considered. The authors then go on to raise questions about the content and construct validity of the current format of the McGill Denture Satisfaction Instrument.
Links
Michaud PL, de Grandmont P, Feine JS, Emami E. Measuring patient-based outcomes: Is treatment satisfaction associated with oral health-related quality of life? J Dent. 2012 Aug;40(8):624-31. Epub 2012 Apr 20. PubMed PMID: 22522414.
