Association of low socioeconomic status and physician assessment of disease severity with oral health-related quality of life in patients with systemic sclerosis: a pilot study from Croatia, a country in transition

Abstract

ObjectiveThis study was performed to identify a possible association of the clinical parameters of systemic sclerosis (SSc) and the socioeconomic status (SES) with oral health-related quality of life (OHrQoL) as measured by the Oral Health Impact Profile 49 (OHIP 49), taking into account the effect of educational level (as a proxy of SES) on oral health.MethodsSubjects were recruited from the Croatian SSc Center of Excellence cohort. Detailed dental and clinical examinations were performed according to standardized protocols. The associations of OHrQoL with disease characteristics and socioeconomic status were examined.ResultsThirty-one consecutive patients with SSc were enrolled (29 women; mean age, 56.45 ± 13.60 years). OHIP 49 scores were significantly correlated with disease activity and severity. Furthermore, OHrQoL was positively correlated with skin involvement as evaluated by the modified Rodnan skin score. Impaired OHrQoL was positively correlated with the severity of general, skin, gastrointestinal, and joint/tendon involvement. The OHIP 49 score differed between patients who were positive and negative for anti-topoisomerase I antibody. Higher OHIP 49 scores were detected in patients with lower SES (primary school educational level).ConclusionCollaboration between rheumatologists and dental professionals is required to improve dental care and oral health outcomes of SSc.

Oral health‐related quality of life in different rheumatic diseases

“…Nevertheless, an impaired OHRQoL of patients with SLE compared to a healthy control was found, which is in line with the interpretation of the current study (Corrêa et al, 2018). Five studies previously assessed OHRQoL of patients with SSc, which also confirmed a reduced OHRQoL of these patients (Baron et al, 2014(Baron et al, , 2015Maddali Bongi et al, 2012;Parat et al, 2018;Yuen & Nelson, 2014). One of these studies applied OHIP 14 questionnaire and found a mean value of 9.97, what is just slightly lower than in the current study (Yuen & Nelson, 2014).…”

“…Differences in disease-related parameters and psychosocial burden between different rheumatic diseases have been documented (Bucourt et al, 2019;Perrot, Dieudé, Pérocheau, & Allanore, 2013;Salaffi et al, 2019). Previous studies on OHRQoL of patients with different rheumatic diseases showed an association between general and OHRQoL (Baron et al, 2015;Blaizot et al, 2013, Parat et al, 2018. Moreover, an impact of different disease-related factors, especially disease activity and severity on OHRQoL, has been presented (Parat et al, 2018, Corrêa et al, 2018Nosratzehi et al, 2019;Schmalz et al, 2018;Schmalz et al, 2020).…”

“…Previous studies on OHRQoL of patients with different rheumatic diseases showed an association between general and OHRQoL (Baron et al, 2015;Blaizot et al, 2013, Parat et al, 2018. Moreover, an impact of different disease-related factors, especially disease activity and severity on OHRQoL, has been presented (Parat et al, 2018, Corrêa et al, 2018Nosratzehi et al, 2019;Schmalz et al, 2018;Schmalz et al, 2020). Therefore, differences in OHRQoL between the different entities might be explainable by the different disease-related burden and its potential impact on psychosocial situation.…”

Sjögren's syndrome: An important confounder in evaluation of oral features in systemic sclerosis

“…A recent study in SSc patients without concomitant SSj or SSj-related antibodies has confirmed impaired unstimulated and stimulated salivary flow regardless of disease subset (Knaś et al, 2014). In our previous study, we have confirmed that low socioeconomic status and physician assessment of disease severity were positively associated with oral health-related quality of life in SSc patients (Parat et al, 2018). Concomitant SSj was a key exclusion criteria and assessment included questionnaire for xerostomia and…”

Patients with non-Sjögren’s sicca report poorer general and oral health-related quality of life than patients with Sjögren’s syndrome: a cross-sectional study

“…Oral health is an integral part of general well-being, and activities such as conversing, smiling, and eating are important determinants of daily QoL 66 . Oral health-related quality of life has been studied in patients with pSS 27,[67][68][69] and other systemic disorders [70][71][72] . Not surprisingly, using the OHIP-49 questionnaire, Lopez-Jornet et al found that patients with pSS had lower OHRQoL compared to patients with secondary SS (24.15 ± 24.34 vs 10.27 ± 14.65) 27 .…”