Abstract

Background: This study focused on institutionalized older people's self-perceived oral status to investigate factors influencing their Taiwanese Short-form of the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-7T) scores.

Methods: Subjects were 536 institutionalized residents in central Taiwan. Information concerning selfperceived ability to chew food, self-perceived mouth dryness, sociodemographic characteristics, health risk behaviors, oral health status, a number of types of commonly used oral healthcare tools served and OHIP-7T was collected via face-to-face interview questionnaires. Linear regression analysis was conducted to determine the best masticatory factor that could serve as a predictor of OHIP-7T scores.

Results: The average OHIP-7T score was 4.85 (standard deviation: 5.50). Through regression analysis, five factors influencing the OHIP-7T score were determined, namely, age (B = 0.023, t = –2.257, 95% CI = -0.007 to -0.096), chewed/did not chew betel quid (B = 0.855, t = 2.58, 95% CI = 0.532 to 3.883), mouthwash use (B = 0.155,t = –2.38, 95% CI = -0.066 to -0.672), self-perceived ability to chew food (B = 0.027,t = –4.70, 95% CI = -0.074 to -0.179), and self-perceived mouth dryness (B = 0.041,t = 7.21, 95% CI = 0.217 to 0.379). In mean tests comparing two groups with high and low OHIP-7T, three variables achieved statistical significance, namely body mass index (BMI), activities of daily living (ADL), and using a toothbrush as an oral cleaning tool.

Conclusion: The results confirmed that institutionalized older people's self-perceived oral status is an effective factor influencing OHIP scores.