Perceived influence of oral health upon quality of life in heart transplant patients

• Rafael Segura-Saint-Gerons ^[1] ; Carmen Segura-Saint-Gerons ^[2] ; Rosario Alcántara-Luque ^[3] ; José M. Arizón-del Prado ^[4] ; Carla Foronda-Garcia-Hidalgo ^[5] ; Antonio Blanco-Hungría ^[6]
  1. [1] DDS. La Carlota Primary Care Center. Guadalquivir District. Córdoba. Andalusian Health Service
  2. [2] Nurse. Heart Transplantation Unit. Reina Sofía University Hospital. Andalusian Health Service
  3. [3] Nurse. Centro Levante Sur Primary Care Center. Córdoba Center District. Andalusian Health Service
  4. [4] Cardiologist. Reina Sofía University Hospital. Andalusian Health Service
  5. [5] Resident in Primary Care. Posadas Primary Care Center. Guadalquivir District. Córdoba. Andalusian Health Service
  6. [6] DDS. Avenida Aeropuerto Primary Care Center. Córdoba District. Córdoba. Andalusian Health Service (Spain)

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• Localización: Medicina oral, patología oral y cirugía bucal. Ed. inglesa, ISSN-e 1698-6946, Vol. 17, Nº. 3 (Mayo), 2012
• Idioma: inglés
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  • Objective: A study was made of heart transplant patient perception of the influence of oral health upon quality of life, based on the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-49) questionnaire validated for Spanish speaking subjects.

    Design: A cross-sectional evaluation was made of the heart transplant patients followed-up on in the Heart Transplantation Unit of Reina Sofía University Hospital (Spain), using the OHIP-49 questionnaire. The included patients were all over age 18 and signed the corresponding informed consent to participation in the study.

    The data were entered in a database and analyzed using the SPSS statistical package.

    Results: A total of 150 heart transplant patients (118 males and 32 females, with a mean age of 54.94 years; range 19-79) were studied. The subjects showed a poor perceived influence of oral health upon quality of life, with a mean score of 24.43 out of a possible total of 196 points.

    Women showed significantly improved perception of the influence of oral health upon quality of life versus men.

    Conclusions: The subjects in our study showed a poor perceived influence of oral health upon quality of life.