Evaluation of oral health-related quality of life and its association with mental health status of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era: A study from Central Saudi Arabia

Ashokkumar Thirunavukkarasu; Majed Sonitan Alharbi; Mohammad Salahuddin; Ahmad Homoud Al-Hazmi; Bashayer Farhan ALruwaili; Aseel Awad Alsaidan; Ahmad Saeed Almutairi; Rayyanah Nasser Almuhaydib; Latifah Ibrahim Alrashoudi

doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1158979

Evaluation of oral health-related quality of life and its association with mental health status of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era: A study from Central Saudi Arabia

Front Public Health. 2023 Mar 24:11:1158979. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1158979. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Ashokkumar Thirunavukkarasu¹, Majed Sonitan Alharbi², Mohammad Salahuddin³, Ahmad Homoud Al-Hazmi¹, Bashayer Farhan ALruwaili¹, Aseel Awad Alsaidan¹, Ahmad Saeed Almutairi², Rayyanah Nasser Almuhaydib⁴, Latifah Ibrahim Alrashoudi⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Community and Family Medicine, College of Medicine, Jouf University, Sakaka, Aljouf, Saudi Arabia.
² Health Care Delivery Department, Qassim Health Cluster, Buraidah, Qassim, Saudi Arabia.
³ Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, Jouf University, Sakaka, Aljouf, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Commitment Department, Ministry of Health, Directorate of Health Affairs, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Background and objectives: The association between oral and mental health is reciprocal, in which poor oral health may lead to several mental health issues, especially among patients with diabetes. The present study evaluated oral health-related quality of life (OHRQOL) and its association with mental health conditions among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in central Saudi Arabia.

Methods: The Arabic version of the Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14) questionnaire and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 Items (DASS-21) were used to assess the OHRQOL and mental health status of patients with diabetes. We utilized logistic regression analysis to identify the predictors of poor OHRQOL, and Spearman's correlation test to identify any correlations between OHIP-14 and overall DASS-21 scores, as well as each subscale.

Results: Of the 677 patients included in the present study, 52.7% had a poor OHRQOL, which was significantly higher (positive association) among patients with a longer duration of diabetes (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 3.31; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.96-4.17) and those who did not periodically monitor their oral health (AOR = 2.85; 95% CI = 1.76-3.89). Some forms (mild, moderate, severe, or extremely severe) of depression, anxiety, and stress were observed in 59.7, 71.1, and 67.1% of the participants, respectively. Furthermore, we found that the total OHRQOL scores had a significant positive association with depression (AOR = 2.32, 95% CI = 1.34-3.71, p = 0.001), anxiety (AOR = 1.81, 95% CI = 1.22-2.79, p = 0.003), and stress (AOR = 1.43, 95% CI = 1.14-2.19, p = 0.026).

Conclusion: The results of the present study suggest the importance of appropriate and targeted health education programs for T2DM patients to ensure periodic dental examinations and oral health. Additionally, we recommend counseling sessions for all T2DM patients with trained healthcare providers to improve their mental health status during follow-up visits at outpatient diabetes care centers.

Keywords: Saudi Arabia; depression; diabetes; oral health; quality of life.

MeSH terms

COVID-19*
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* / epidemiology
Humans
Pandemics
Quality of Life / psychology
Saudi Arabia / epidemiology