Oral health-related quality of life of community-dwellers in the canton of Bern, Switzerland

Objective: The study aims to describe and analyze the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) of persons aged ≥45 years in the canton of Bern, Switzerland. Material and Methods: Community dwellers were recruited by random sampling from the canton of Bern. Data were collected by a questionnaire (demographic factors, medical history, oral health behavior, dental patient-reported outcomes [dPROs]) and a clinical examination (dental caries, periodontal disease, oral hygiene, mastication). dPROs were evaluated using the OHRQoL-questionnaire Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index with items related to four domains: functional limitations, pain and discomfort, psychological impact, behavioral impact. χ2 tests, Cochrane Armitage trend tests and binary logistic regression were performed with P < 0.05 statistical significance. Results: The highest prevalence (199/44%, n [total] = 275 participants) of reported problems was observed in the psychological impact domain. Binary logistic regression shows that participants with rheumatoid arthritis (odds ratio [OR] = 4.86, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.70–13.87) and chewing deficiencies (OR 28.43, 95% CI = 2.11–382.68) had higher odds of having functional limitations, while participants with bleeding gums (OR = 1.69, 95% CI = 1.02–2.81) had higher odds of experiencing pain and discomfort. Participants with depression had higher odds of having pain and discomfort (OR = 2.44, 95% CI = 1.03–5.81), suffering a behavioral impact (OR 5.89, 95% CI = 1.57–22.20) and a low OHRQoL (OR = 2.33, 95% CI = 0.09–0.58). Conclusions: The study shows that poor oral hygiene, high DMFT, chewing deficiency, rheumatoid arthritis, and depression are associated with low OHRQoL.