Community Dental Health

cover art

Cover Date:
September 2008
Print ISSN:
0265 539X
Vol:
25
Issue:
3

Oral health and its impact on the life quality of homeless people in Hong Kong

Objectives: To report on the oral health status and its impact on the life quality of homeless people in Hong Kong. Design: A cross sectional epidemiological survey involving clinical oral examinations and face-to-face interviews with 147 homeless participants. Clinical examinations were carried out following WHO criteria. The impact of oral health on quality of life was assessed with the short form of Oral Health Impact Profile, OHIP-14. Results: Over 90% had caries experience and most related to untreated decay. The mean DMFT score for dentate subjects was 8.1 (DT = 3.4, MT = 4.0, FT = 0.7). Periodontal disease was highly prevalent, 96% having periodontal pockets. The burden of oral health on their daily lives was common, 88% reporting an oral health impact within the past year. A multiple regression analysis indicated that the OHIP-14 score had significant associations with self-rated oral health, dental pain, employment status and length of time being homeless (p<0.05). Those who assessed rated oral health as ‘poor/very poor’, reported dental pain in the past year, were unemployed, and homeless for more than one year had poorer oral health related quality of life (significantly higher OHIP scores) than their counterparts. Conclusion: Among the homeless population studied, oral health status was poor and its impact on their life quality was substantial. The oral health impact was associated with socio-demographics and perceived dental problems.

Key words: Homeless, oral health, quality of life

Article Price
£15.00
Institution Article Price
£
Page Start
137
Page End
142
Authors
Y. Luo, C. McGrath

Articles from this issue

  • Title
  • Pg. Start
  • Pg. End

  1. Editorial - Research on oral health and the quality of life – a critical overview
  2. 130
  3. 131

  1. Comparison of two methods in deriving a short version of oral health-related quality of life measure.
  2. 132
  3. 136

  1. Oral health and its impact on the life quality of homeless people in Hong Kong
  2. 137
  3. 142

  1. The presenting complaints of low income adults for emergency dental care: An analysis of 35,000 episodes in Victoria, Australia.
  2. 143
  3. 147

  1. International variation in the incidence of oral and pharyngeal cancer
  2. 148
  3. 153

  1. Caries prevalence in 2-year-old children in the city of Zurich
  2. 154
  3. 160

  1. Association between breastfeeding duration and non-nutritive sucking habits
  2. 161
  3. 165

  1. I want braces: factors motivating patients and their parents to seek orthodontic treatment.
  2. 166
  3. 169

  1. Cariogenic and erosive potential of the medication used by HIV-infected children: pH and sugar concentration
  2. 170
  3. 172

  1. Prevalence of breath malodour in 7-11 year old children living in Middle Anatolia, Turkey.
  2. 173
  3. 177

  1. Enamel fluorosis in 12- and 15-year-old school children in Costa Rica. Results of a National Survey, 1999
  2. 178
  3. 184

  1. Restorative treatment threshold reported by Iranian dentists
  2. 185
  3. 190

  1. Short Communication - Fissure sealants on permanent first molars – consequences of a one-year delay
  2. 191
  3. 192