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. 2022 Jun;8(3):742-749.
doi: 10.1002/cre2.560. Epub 2022 Mar 28.

Health-related quality of life in patients with chronic orofacial pain compared with other chronic pain patients

Johanna Tanner  1   2 , Tuija Teerijoki-Oksa  1 , Hannu Kautiainen  3   4 , Pekka Vartiainen  5 , Eija Kalso  6 , Heli Forssell  7
Affiliations

Health-related quality of life in patients with chronic orofacial pain compared with other chronic pain patients

Johanna Tanner et al. Clin Exp Dent Res. 2022 Jun.

Abstract

Background: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of orofacial pain patients is lower than that of the general population and impaired in multiple dimensions. The aim of the present study was to investigate HRQoL of orofacial pain patients in comparison with patients suffering from other chronic pain disorders.

Materials and methods: One hundred and fifty-one tertiary care facial pain patients (mean age, 50 years; standard deviation [SD], 15; 119 females), were compared with 312 other non-cancer chronic pain patients (mean age, 46 years; SD, 13; 204 women), recruited from three multidisciplinary pain clinics in Finland. The groups were compared using the 15D, and pain-related measures such as pain interference, pain acceptance, anxiety, depression, and sleep. Statistical comparisons between groups were done using t test, χ2 test, or analysis of covariance. Multivariate linear regression analysis was used to study whether pain-related aspects influencing HRQoL are similar between the patient groups.

Results: The 15D score was significantly higher in facial pain patients (0.823; SD, 0.114) indicating better HRQoL in comparison with other chronic pain patients (0.732; SD, 0.107) (p < .001). The 15D profiles of studied populations resembled each other but orofacial pain patients showed significantly higher scores for most individual 15D dimensions. Dimensions regarding discomfort and symptoms and sleep were most affected in both groups. Orofacial pain patients showed less psychosocial disability and better acceptance of their pain. Pain acceptance was a weaker explanatory factor of HRQoL in orofacial pain patients.

Conclusion: Compared to other non-cancer chronic pain, chronic pain in the orofacial area causes less impairment in HRQoL. Orofacial pain patients showed less psychosocial disability and better pain acceptance.

Keywords: 15D instrument; chronic pain; health-related quality of life; orofacial pain; pain comorbidities; psychosocial factors.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
HRQoL of patients suffering from orofacial pain and other chronic pain condition measured with the 15D instrument. Means with 95% confidence intervals are shown. HRQoL, health‐related quality of life
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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