“Easy-to-eat Meals” for Outpatients Following Dental Treatment

Abstract

Patients often experience temporary difficulty in masticating during the period immediately following dental treatment. The purpose of this study was to investigate subjectively assessed satisfaction with a specially designed diet for such patients by means of a questionnaire. These "easy-to-eat meals" were planned and provided by this hospital in Japan, and comprised a combination of commercially available and nutritionally rich soft foods, jellied foods, drinks, and other items. The patients were required to commence consuming them immediately following dental treatment. The questionnaire contained 6 categories-Satisfaction, Taste, Meal completion, Convenience, Reduction in discomfort, and Likelihood of reuse-to be evaluated on a 10-cm visual analog scale (VAS). The overall response was positive in all 41 completed questionnaires, with an overall score of 6 or higher for every category. Orthodontics achieved the highest VAS score in every category, followed by oral implantology, prosthodontics, and conservative