Oral health-related quality of life among a group of patients with substance use disorders in rehabilitation treatment: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Abstract Background Little is known about the effect of illicit drugs on oral health-related quality of life. Our aim was to investigate oral health-related quality among patients with substance use disorders, and its association with dental caries experience and drug use profile. Methods Applying a stratified cluster random sampling method, we conducted a cross-sectional study on 267 in-treatment patients with substance use disorders in Isfahan, Iran in 2016. Self-administered questionnaires requested participants’ demographics and drug use profile. A trained dental student carried out personal interviews utilizing Oral Impact on Daily Performance (OIDP) instrument. Clinical examinations were conducted to record dental caries experience. T test, ANOVA, pearson and spearman correlation coefficient, and linear regression model served for statistical analysis (p 0.05). Participants with higher caries experience, reported greater OIDP (p < 0.05). Conclusions There is an oral impact on the daily performance of patients with substance use disorders. Patients with higher caries experience reported greater OIDP. Thus, in addition to normative assessment of oral health, clinicians should consider the patients’ self-reported oral problems, and the social and mental aspects of oral conditions.

Keywords

• Illicit drugs
• Oral health
• Dental caries
• Quality of life