Changes in Oral Health‐Related Quality of Life in Elderly Edentulous Patients after Complete Denture Therapy and Possible Role of their Initial Expectation: A Follow‐Up Study

PURPOSE: An edentulous patient's psychosocial attributes that may have influence on the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) are given little consideration in therapeutic care. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of complete denture therapy on overall OHRQoL in elderly edentulous patients. The possible role of the patient's initial expectation toward OHRQoL was also evaluated. METHODS AND MATERIALS: OHRQoL was assessed using the OHIP-EDENT psychometric instrument, and 56 patients participated in the study. The assessment was done at three time points including pretreatment, after 1 month, and after 6 months. Significant differences in the OHIP-EDENT scores between pretreatment to after 1 month and pretreatment to after 6 months were calculated using Wilcoxon Signed Rank test (p < 0.05). Mann-Whitney test was used to analyze the association of patient expectations with OHIP-EDENT scores. RESULT: Statistically significant improvement in OHRQoL after complete denture therapy at both 1 and 6 months postinsertion was evident. Statistically significant difference in the mean scores between the genders was observed after 6 months. There was no statistically significant difference in the levels of dysfunction, discomfort, and disability associated with oral problems between moderate and high expectation group at any time point. CONCLUSION: Elderly edentulous patients had an improved overall OHRQoL after complete denture therapy, and female patients had appreciably better OHRQoL than their male counterparts. A patient's initial expectation did not have significant influence on overall OHRQoL.