Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Aug 10;22(1):340.
doi: 10.1186/s12903-022-02372-2.

The role of dental pain and psychosocial factors on the relationship between dental caries and oral health-related quality of life in children

Affiliations

The role of dental pain and psychosocial factors on the relationship between dental caries and oral health-related quality of life in children

Cilio Antonio Ribeiro Junior et al. BMC Oral Health. .

Erratum in

Abstract

Background: To examine the role of dental pain, sense of coherence (SOC) and social support on the relationship between dental caries and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in children aged 12 years.

Methods: A cross-sectional study involving 400 schoolchildren selected from public schools in a socioeconomically disadvantaged region in the city of Manaus, Brazil was carried out. The predictors of OHRQoL were selected according to the Wilson and Cleary theoretical model, including number of decayed teeth and its clinical consequence (component D of the DMFT index and PUFA/pufa index), dental pain (symptom status), and SOC and social support (individual and environmental characteristics). Statistical analysis was conducted through structural equation modelling and multivariable negative binomial regression. The significance level established for all analyses was 5%.

Results: Number of dental caries was indirectly linked with OHRQoL (β = 0.19, 95% CI 0.11/0.29) through dental pain, SOC and social support. Clinical consequences of untreated caries directly predicted poor OHRQoL (β = 0.12, 95% CI 0.01/0.23). Dental pain, SOC and social support did not moderate the effect of dental caries measures on OHRQoL.

Conclusion: Our findings suggest the role of dental pain, SOC and social support as mediator factors on the link between dental caries and OHRQoL. Tackling dental caries along with psychosocial factors may attenuated the impact of oral health on OHRQoL in children.

Keywords: Dental caries; Dental pain; Quality of life; Sense of coherence; Social support.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Theoretical model adapted from Wilson and Cleary [10]
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Confirmatory factor analysis of the 2-factor 8 items (measurement model) obtained through bootstrap (standard error/bias-corrected 95% CI). **P < 0.01
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Full model of associations between decayed teeth, clinical consequence of untreated caries, dental pain, SOC, social support and OHRQoL. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01. The model was adjusted for sex and monthly family income. Direct effects are represented through solid lines, and indirect effects are indicated by dashed lines

Similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Locker D, Allen F. What do measures of ‘oral health-related quality of life’ measure? Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2007;35:401–411. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0528.2007.00418.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Sischo L, Broder H. Oral health-related quality of life: What, why, how, and future implications. J Dent Res. 2011;90:1264–1270. doi: 10.1177/0022034511399918. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Baker SR, Mat A, Robinson PG. What psychosocial factors influence adolescents’ oral health? J Dent Res. 2010;89:1230–1235. doi: 10.1177/0022034510376650. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Vettore MV, Ahmad SFH, Machuca C, Fontanini H. Socio-economic status, social support, social network, dental status, and oral health reported outcomes in adolescents. Eur J Oral Sci. 2019;127:139–146. doi: 10.1111/eos.12605. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Foster Page LA, Thomson WM, Ukra A, Baker SR. Clinical status in adolescents: is its impact on oral health-related quality of life influenced by psychological characteristics? Eur J Oral Sci. 2013;121(3 Pt 1):182–187. doi: 10.1111/eos.12034. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types