Oral Health and Dental Management

Abstract

The Relationship Between Denture-Wearing and the Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index in a Group of Institutionalised Romanian 65-74 Year Olds

Alice Murariu, Carmen Hanganu

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the relation between prosthetic status and quality of life of a group of institutionalised 65-74 year olds using the Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index. Methods: In 2010, a cross-sectional survey was conducted in Iasi, Romania, among a convenience sample of 161 residents aged 65-74 years from the St. Parascheva Retirement Centre (118 [73%] females, 43 [27%] males). They were divided in three groups according to the type of prostheses: Group 1=people with complete dentures, Group 2=people with removable partial dentures, and Group 3=people with fixed or no prostheses. The subjects were clinically examined according to World Health Organization 1997 criteria by two calibrated dentists and their oral health-related quality of life was assessed using the Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI) questionnaire. Ethical approval for the study was obtained from the relevant authority. The resulting data were entered in to a statistical software program, for a statistical significance threshold at P