The Impact of Quality of Life on Oral Health in a Male Prison Population in Portugal: A Cross-Sectional Study

Oral health problems can have a significant impact on people's quality of life, negatively affecting the most disadvantaged populations. The prison population compared with the general population has a higher risk of developing oral health problems. The main objective of this study was to assess the relationship between prisoners' oral health status and their oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL).This cross-sectional study was conducted with the participation of 103 male prisoners aged between 18 and 70 years. Participants underwent an intraoral clinical examination and responded to the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP)-14 and sociodemographic questionnaires.The sample mean age was 42.7 ± 9.6 years. The impacts of oral health on quality of life were assessed using the OHIP-14, which presented a mean score of 13.16 ± 11.79. The highest prevalence of impact on oral health was observed in the domains of psychological discomfort (29.6%), followed by physical pain (24.3%). It was observed that 68.0% of the individuals had caries lesions. The mean Decayed, Missing, and Filled Permanent Teeth Index (DMFT) was 16.88 ± 8.56, and the component with the highest weight was the number of missing teeth, with a mean value of 13.00 ± 8.44.In terms of assessing oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL), it was observed that the higher the value of the different periodontal indices, as well as the number of missing teeth, the worse the quality of life in relation to oral health. Therefore, it is necessary to create measures to promote oral health and self-care.