Oral Health Related Quality of Life in Orofacial Pain Patients

Objective:To investigate the oral health related quality of life (OHRQoL) in Thai orofacial pain patients. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was performed on 463 walk-in patients, aged 15-60, at the OPD clinic at Chulalongkorn University Dental School. Each person was asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire consisting of questions regarding demographic data, orofacial pain conditions, the Thai happiness indicator (which assessed mental health status), and the short-form Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14), a validated Thai version for OHRQoL assessment. Results:Participants comprised 49 temporomandibular pain patients, 314 intraoral pain patients and 100 non-pain patients. Most symptoms of the temporomandibular and intraoral pain patients had started less than 3 months before (58.3% and 75.4%, respectively); many reported a pain intensity of 4 to 6 on an 11-point rating scale (43.8% and 38.5%, respectively). All participants had average mental health scores (mean = 29.78). OHIP mean scores for the temporomandibular pain intraoral pain and control group were 24.40, 21.19 and 7.31 respectively. The orofacial pain group presented higher impaired OHRQoL compared to the control group (Kruskal-Wallis, P<0.05). No statistical difference was found between OHIP mean scores of the temporomandibular and intraoral pain groups (24.4 and 21.19, respectively). Eating discomfort (57.1%) and self-consciousness (57.1%) were the items reported most often in the temporomandibular pain group, while interrupted meals (42%) were prevalent in the intraoral pain group. Conclusion:Orofacial pain has a significant impact on OHRQoL, but there is no difference in impact on OHRQoL between temporomandibular and intraoral pain patients.