Case-control study examining the impact of oral health problems on the quality of life of the families of preschoolers

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of dental caries, traumatic dental injuries (TDI), toothaches, and malocclusion on the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) of the families of Brazilian preschool children. A population-based, matched case-control study involving 415 pre-schoolers aged 3-5 years was conducted. The case (impact on OHRQoL) and control groups (no impact on OHRQoL) were matched for age, gender, and family income at an 1: 4 ratio. Impact on the OHRQoL of a family was assessed using the Brazilian version of the Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale (B-ECOHIS). Dental caries, TDI, and malocclusion were diagnosed by three calibrated dentists (Kappa: 0.85-0.90). Data analysis involved descriptive statistics and conditional logistic regression analysis (p = 0.05; 95% CI). There were no differences between the cases and controls regarding age, gender, and family income (p > 0.05). The most frequent responses on the B-ECOHIS among cases were felt guilty (68.6%) and been upset (48.2%). The following variables were significantly associated with negative impacts on family OHRQoL (cases): caries severity (OR = 6.680; 95% CI = 2.731-16.349), a history of toothache (OR = 2.666; 95% CI = 1.492-4.765), parental rating of the child's oral health as poor (OR: 1.973; 95% CI = 1.072-3.634), and parent's/caregiver's age (OR = 2.936; 95% CI = 1.077-3.478). Anterior open bite was positively associated with OHRQoL (OR = 4.050; 9 5% CI = 1.333-12.314). Caries severity, a history of toothache, parental rating of the child's oral health as poor, and younger parents/caregivers were associated with impact on the OHRQoL of the families of preschoolers.