This study investigated the impact of oral health on neurological disorders using the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP). A total of 460 subjects completed the OHIP, including 141 control subjects who did not have any neurological conditions. Of the 319 subjects with a neurological diagnosis who were enrolled in the study, 31% had multiple sclerosis (MS), 34% had epilepsy, and 34% had other neurological conditions. Compared to the control group, mean age (p = .001), education (p = .003), and household income levels (p ≤ .001) were statistically significantly lower among subjects with epilepsy than in the other two groups. The majority of the study populations were Caucasian and the percentage was highest in those with MS (87%). Patients with any neurologic diagnosis had greater physical pain and disability than controls. Adjusting for demographic variables, the impact of physical disability was statistically significantly higher in patients with any neurological diagnosis (including MS and epilepsy) (OR = 4.49). In multinomial regression, the strongest association of physical disability impact was noted in patients with epilepsy (OR = 5.17). The physical disability domain of the OHIP is more commonly associated with a neurological diagnosis, including MS, and the association is strongest in patients with diagnosis of epilepsy.
© 2012 Special Care Dentistry Association and Wiley Periodicals, Inc.