Evaluation of jaw function, oral health-related quality of life, and nutritional status during oral rehabilitation procedures – a pilot study

Abstract

Aims

To evaluate limitations in jaw function, oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL), and nutritional status during extensive oral rehabilitation procedures.

Material methods

Fourteen participants (mean age ± SD: 70 ± 3.8) undergoing major oral rehabilitation involving the restoration of a minimum of eight teeth were recruited in the study. Jaw function limitations scores (JFLS), oral health-impact profile (OHIP), and nutritional status were measured at different time points during, six months, and one year after the rehabilitation procedures. Nutritional status was evaluated by measuring the body weight and arm and calf muscle circumference. The effect of time points on the measured variables was evaluated with Friedman’s test. Trends in nutritional status were evaluated with linear regression analysis.

Results

The results of the analysis showed significant main effects of time points on the JLFS (p < .001) and OHIP scores (p = .005). However, there was no effect of time points on the body weight (p = .917) and calf muscle circumference (p = .424), but a significant effect on arm circumference (p = .038). Further, there was a decreasing trend for body weight (64.3%), arm (71.4%), and calf circumference (64.3%) in the majority of the patients.

Conclusion

The results of the preliminary study suggest that people undergoing extensive oral rehabilitation procedures show improvement in jaw function and an increase in OHRQoL after the rehabilitation procedure. Despite no major changes in the nutritional indicators, most patients showed a negative trend in their body weight, arm circumference, and calf circumference, suggesting that they may be susceptible to nutritional changes.

Keywords:

• Arm circumference
• calf circumference
• oral health-impact profile
• prosthodontics

Ethics approval and consent to participate

The study was approved by the Regional Ethical Review Board in Stockholm (D-nr 2018/531-31/1) following the Declaration of Helsinki. The participants were given both verbal as well as written information about this study and informed written consent was obtained. Also, participants were informed that if they wished to discontinue the study, they could do so at any point.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Authors’ contributions

TT collected and complied with the data and drafted the first draft together with AK. AK contributed to the conception and design of the study, the compilation and statistical analysis of the data, and the preparation of the figures and the final draft. CG was involved in the data collection and provided critical suggestions in the conception and finalization of the manuscript. The study was conceived, designed, implemented, and critically revised by AG who was responsible for the overall supervision of the study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

On reasonable request, the corresponding author (AK) will provide the datasets used in this study.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by research grants from Stockholm County Council and Karolinska Institutet (SOF: Styrgruppen för Odontologisk Forskning) and grants from Karolinska Institutet Foundation.