Caregivers' perception of oral health-related quality of life in a group of Nigerian children living with human immunodeficiency virus

Abstract

Aim: This study examined the caregivers' perception of the effect of dental conditions on general well-being and family life of a group of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected Nigerian children. A secondary aim was to investigate correlations between the children's sociodemographic and health-related variables and caregivers' global ratings of oral health and well-being. Study Design A cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey was conducted among parents/caregivers of 95 HIV-positive children receiving care at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria.

Materials and methods: The "Parental-Caregivers Perception Questionnaire" which included measures of global ratings of oral health and well-being as well as effects of oral health on domains of oral symptoms, functional limitations, emotional well-being, and family well-being/parental distress was used. Assessment was based on the child's oral health within the preceding 3 months of the study.

Results: The most affected subscale of the oral health-related quality of life was functional limitation followed by parental distress and then oral symptoms. Caregivers of older children were 2½ times more likely to view oral health as impacting their child's overall health (P = 0.034). Furthermore, caregivers of children who had not yet commenced antiretroviral therapy were 15% more likely to report oral symptoms (P = 0.024) and 11% were more likely to be distressed.

Statistics: Data entry, validation, and analysis were done using SPSS version 17.0. Findings were considered to be statistically significant when 95% confidence intervals were not overlapping.

Conclusions: According to caregivers' perceptions, oral symptoms, functional limitations, and parental distress outweighed emotional well-being in impacting a child's oral health quality of life. Oral health programs to improve the knowledge of caregivers on the importance of oral health in HIV-positive children are necessary for improvement in overall quality of life.