Associations Of Social Psychological Factors And OHRQoL In Oral Cancer

To comprehensively investigate the associations between socioeconomic status, self-efficacy for oral care, perceived social support, and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) among postoperative oral cancer patients in Eastern China. Patients who underwent oral cancer surgery at the First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical University over the past five years were included in this cross-sectional study. Data were collected via telephone follow-ups and online questionnaires, which encompassed sociodemographic characteristics, the Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14), self-efficacy scale for oral care (SESS), and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). A structural equation modeling (SEM) framework, employing bootstrapping methods, was constructed based on hypothesized pathways to examine the interrelationships and strength of associations among variables. Socioeconomic status, self-efficacy for oral care, and perceived social support were significantly associated with OHRQoL in postoperative oral cancer patients. Socioeconomic status exhibited direct correlations with both self-efficacy for oral care and perceived social support. Perceived social support mediated the relationship between socioeconomic status and self-efficacy for oral care. Furthermore, OHRQoL was indirectly associated with perceived social support through the mediating role of self-efficacy for oral care. Socioeconomic status, self-efficacy for oral care, and perceived social support emerged as critical predictors of postoperative OHRQoL among oral cancer patients in Eastern China. These findings may contribute to the development of targeted postoperative care plans and the optimization of patient follow-up strategies to enhance oral health-related quality of life in this population.