Oral health and well-being in patients of Totoras Health Center, Ambato
Keywords:
CALIDAD DE VIDA; COMODIDAD DEL PACIENTE; SALUD BUCAL.; QUALITY OF LIFE; PATIENT COMFORT; ORAL HEALTH.; QUALIDADE DE VIDA; CONFORTO DO PACIENTE; SAÚDE BUCAL.Abstract
Introduction: oral health directly influences quality of life, affecting basic functions, psychological well-being, and social performance, especially in populations with educational and economic inequalities.
Objective: to evaluate oral health-related quality of life in patients treated at the Totoras Health Center, Ambato.
Methods: an observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted at the Totoras Health Center. Using non-probabilistic convenience sampling, 50 patients aged between 25 and 60 years were selected. The application of the validated OHIP-14 questionnaire allowed the collection of information that addressed the analyzed variables. Descriptive analysis and Chi-square test with significance at p<005 were employed. Bioethical principles were respected.
Results: 58 % of patients reported a moderate impact on their quality of life, 38 % a mild impact, 2 % severe, and 2 % no impact. A significant association was found between gender and impact, with men being the most affected. Likewise, patients with lower educational levels reported a greater perception of work incapacity due to dental problems. The majority identified as mestizo (88 %), and 40 % reported incomes equivalent to one unified basic salary.
Conclusions: oral health showed a relevant impact on quality of life, with greater affectation in men and individuals with lower educational levels. These findings highlight the need for inclusive oral health strategies that reduce inequalities and strengthen access to dental services in vulnerable populations.
Downloads
References
1. Chaffee BW, Rodrigues PH, Kramer PF, Vítolo MR, Feldens CA. Oral health-related quality-of-life scores differ by socioeconomic status and caries experience. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol [Internet]. 2017 Jun 1 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 45(3):216–24. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28083880/
2. Riva F, Seoane M, Reichenheim ME, Tsakos G, Celeste RK. Adult oral health‐related quality of life instruments: A systematic review. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol [Internet]. 2022 Oct 18 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 50(5):333–8. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34409626/
3. Spanemberg JC, Cardoso JA, Slob EMGB, López-López J. Quality of life related to oral health and its impact in adults. J Stomatol Oral Maxillofac Surg [Internet]. 2019 Jun [Citado 20/09/2025]; 120(3): 234-239. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30763780/
4. Hassan BH, Abd El Moniem MM, Dawood SS, Alsultan AA, Abdelhafez AI, Elsakhy NM. Dental Anxiety and Oral-Health-Related Quality of Life among Rural Community-Dwelling Older Adults. Int J Environ Res Public Health [Internet]. 2022 Jun 22 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 19(13): 7643. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35805302/
5. Yun J, Lee Y, Lee HJ. A comparison of health-related quality of life and personal, social, and environmental factors of older adults according to a residential area: a propensity score matching analysis. Quality of Life Research [Internet]. 2022 Sep 2 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 31(9): 2631–43. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35366760/
6. Geigl C, Loss J, Leitzmann M, Janssen C. Social factors of health-related quality of life in older adults: a multivariable analysis. Quality of Life Research [Internet]. 2023 Nov 17 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 32(11): 3257–68. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37458960/
7. Knorst JK, Sfreddo CS, de F. Meira G, Zanatta FB, Vettore MV, Ardenghi TM. Socioeconomic status and oral health‐related quality of life: A systematic review and meta‐analysis. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol [Internet]. 2021 Apr 28 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 49(2): 95–102. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33368600/
8. García Pérez A, González-Aragón Pineda ÁE, Gonzalez Olivares H. Oral health-related quality-of-life scores differ by socioeconomic status, mother’s level of education, dental visits and severity of malocclusion in mixed dentition of eight-to-ten-year-old schoolchildren. PeerJ [Internet]. 2021 Sep 1 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 9: e12062. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34557348/
9. Montero J, Lopez JF, Vicente MP, Galindo MP, Albaladejo A, Bravo M. Comparative validity of the OIDP and OHIP-14 in describing the impact of oral health on quality of life in a cross-sectional study performed in Spanish adults. Med Oral Patol Oral Cir Bucal [Internet]. 2011 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 16(6): e816-21. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21217617/
10. BASTOS RS, SÁ LM, VELASCO SRM, TEIXEIRA DF, PAINO LS, VETTORE MV. Frailty and oral health-related quality of life in community-dwelling older adults: a cross-sectional study. Braz Oral Res [Internet]. 2021 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 35: e139. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34932668/
11. Lee CJ, Ho MH, Joo JY, Montayre J, Lin YK, Chang CC, et al. Gender differences in the association between oral health literacy and oral health-related quality of life in older adults. BMC Oral Health [Internet]. 2022 Dec 25 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 22(1): 205. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35614446/
12. Bernabé E, Suominen AL, Nordblad A, Vehkalahti MM, Hausen H, Knuuttila M, et al. Education level and oral health in Finnish adults: evidence from different lifecourse models. J Clin Periodontol [Internet]. 2011 Jan [Citado 20/09/2025]; 38(1): 25–32. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21058971/
13. Berezovsky B, Bencko V. ORAL HEALTH IN A CONTEXT OF PUBLIC HEALTH: PREVENTION-RELATED ISSUE. Cent Eur J Public Health [Internet]. 2021 Dec 1 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 29(4): 317–21. Disponible en: https://cejph.szu.cz/pdfs/cjp/2021/04/11.pdf
14. Knorst JK, Vettore MV, Brondani B, Emmanuelli B, Ardenghi TM. The Different Roles of Structural and Cognitive Social Capital on Oral Health-Related Quality of Life among Adolescents. Int J Environ Res Public Health [Internet]. 2023 Apr 1 [Citado 20/09/2025]; 20(8): 5603. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37107885/
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Carmen Salinas Goodier
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who have publications with this journal agree to the following terms: Authors will retain their copyrights and grant the journal the right of first publication of their work, which will be publication of their work, which will be simultaneously subject to the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY-NC 4.0) that allows third parties to share the work as long as its author and first publication in this journal are indicated.
Authors may adopt other non-exclusive license agreements for distribution of the published version of the work (e.g.: deposit it in an institutional telematic archive or publish it in a volume). Likewise, and according to the recommendations of the Medical Sciences Editorial (ECIMED), authors must declare in each article their contribution according to the CRediT taxonomy (contributor roles). This taxonomy includes 14 roles, which can be used to represent the tasks typically performed by contributors in scientific academic production. It should be consulted in monograph) whenever initial publication in this journal is indicated. Authors are allowed and encouraged to disseminate their work through the Internet (e.g., in institutional telematic archives or on their web page) before and during the submission process, which may produce interesting exchanges and increase citations of the published work. (See The effect of open access). https://casrai.org/credit/
