Page 181 - Petelin, Ana, ur. 2024. Zdravje delovno aktivnih in starejših odraslih / Health of Working-Age and Older Adults. Zbornik povzetkov z recenzijo ▪︎ Book of Abstracts. Koper: Založba Univerze na Primorskem/University of Primorska Press

Oral health-related quality of life in the adult population of Slovenia
in 2019

1
2
Anja Durjava , Martin Ranfl , Barbara Artnik 3
1 National Institute of Public Health, Regional Unit Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
2 National Institute of Public Health, Regional Unit Murska Sobota, Murska Sobota,
Slovenia
3 University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Medicine, Chair of Public Health, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Introduction: Problems with the oral cavity and/or teeth cause pain, discomfort and
functional limitations of the oral cavity and/or teeth and affect quality of life. Oral
health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) can assess the impact of oral health on a per-
son’s life, self-image, social interactions and work performance.
Methods: As part of the »National Oral Health Survey of Adults in Slovenia in 2019«,
indicators of OHRQoL were monitored using a questionnaire among 3,200 adults in
Slovenia aged 18 to 74 years. Participants received an invitation to the online survey
by post, and a written questionnaire was included in the notification letter for people
over 44 years of age. The OHRQoL questions related to the frequency of eating diffi-
culties, feelings of tension due to oral and/or dental problems, problems performing
daily tasks, dental pain, painful gums/mouth sore and limitations in social interactions
due to the appearance of teeth. The results were analysed using demographic data.
The chi-square (χ ) test and the CCP test were used to statistically analyse the differ-
2
ences between the categories. posterji | poster presentations
Results: 31.9% of adults occasionally or more often experienced a decrease in OHRQoL
due to one or more limitations caused by oral and/or dental problems. Occasional-
ly or more often, 27% of adults reported painful gums/mouth sore, 20% had difficulty
eating and 19% felt tense due to oral and/or dental problems. 10% reported difficul-
ties performing daily tasks and 12% reported dental pain; no differences were found
between men and women. Adults over 54 years of age were more likely to have diffi-
2
culties eating than younger people (χ test=22.434, p<0.001). A higher proportion of
adults with less education reported limitations due to problems with the oral cavity
and/or teeth. Difficulty eating was reported by 27% of adults with primary, 20% with
secondary and 13% with at least tertiary education (χ test=11.388, p=0.003). 12% of
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adults with primary and secondary education and 6% with at least tertiary education
2
reported difficulties performing daily tasks (χ test=6.491, p=0.039), and dental pain
was reported by 19% of adults with primary, 13% with secondary and 9% with at least
tertiary education (χ test=6.491, p=0.039). Similar differences in educational status
2
were also found for limitations in social interactions due to dental appearance.
Discussion and conclusions: OHRQoL is related to socioeconomic factors such as age
and education, but not to gender. The proportion of people who rate their OHRQoL
more negatively is higher among those over 44 years of age and those with less edu-
cation. The differences in OHRQoL indicate that older people and people with less
education are more at risk. Understanding the socioeconomic characteristics of pop-
ulations with poorer OHRQoL is crucial for appropriate public health approaches to
improve the oral health of the adult population in Slovenia.
Keywords: quality of life, oral health, oral health care

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