Factors Affecting Oral Health Related Quality of Life of Complete Denture Wearers Rehabilitated at the University of Nairobi Department of Dental Sciences

Abstract

Background Loss of teeth affects the performance of daily life activities and may have an undesirable effect on the general Quality of Life (QoL). Rehabilitation with removable complete dentures (RCD) improves QOL though it may present with challenges. Oral Health Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) is the subjective assessment of oral health, functional and psychological wellbeing, expectations, and satisfaction with care. Broad Objective: To investigate the post rehabilitation oral health related quality of life among RCD wearers seen at the University of Nairobi (UoN) Department of Dental sciences (DDS) Study Design: This was an analytical cross-sectional study. Study Area: University of Nairobi (UoN), Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Dental sciences. Study Population: Patients rehabilitated with complete maxillary and mandibular dentures at the UoN School of Dental Sciences. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted between 2021-2023. The targeted sample size was 125. The patients rehabilitated with removable complete dentures (RCD) at UoN DDS between Jan 2014 and Dec 2019 according to the inclusion criteria were enrolled in the study. Stratified random sampling method was used. A structured interview was done to collect sociodemographic data such as age gender, social support, level of education, social support and presence of chronic illness...