Prevalence of oral impacts in a Sinhala-speaking older population in urban Sri Lanka.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the impact of oral conditions on the quality of life in an urban older population in Sri Lanka.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional study where the data were collected by means of an interviewer-administered questionnaire.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 585 Sinhala speaking older adults aged 60 years and above who were residents of a densely populated urban area. Of the 585, 475 were living at home and 110 were living in institutions.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Psycho-social and functional impacts of oral conditions were assessed using the Sinhalese translation of the OHIP-14 scale.

RESULTS

25% of subjects had experienced one or more impacts due to their oral conditions fairly often or very often during the preceding 6 months. Multiple impacts were reported by 17% of the subjects. The most commonly experienced impact item was "uncomfortable to eat" (17%). The mean OHIP score was 0.8 +/- 1.8. The prevalence of oral impacts and the OHIP scores were significantly associated with age, perceived oral health status, perceived need for dental care and dental visiting patterns. Those who visited a dentist during the past 12 months reported significantly more impacts than those who did not visit.

CONCLUSIONS

Oral impacts that affected the quality of life were relatively common in this sample of older individuals.