Impact of oral lesions among South African adults with HIV/AIDS on oral health-related quality of life

AbstractBackground/purpose tudy examined the association between oral conditions in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immune-deficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients and the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) among South African adults. als and methods ipants consisted of 175 HIV-positive adults who visited Johannesburg Hospitalʹs outpatient HIV clinic. A systematic oral examination recorded the presence or absence of HIV-related lesions. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to determine participantsʹ sociodemographic characteristics and access to dental care. It included items adapted from the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP), which measures the OHRQoL. Participantsʹ OHIP scores were not normally distributed, thus were dichotomized as either less than or equal to the median score or greater than the median score: participants with above-median scores had a poorer OHRQoL. The data analysis included a multivariable-adjusted logistic regression analysis. s al, 109 (62.3%) subjects had multiple oral lesions. Those with more than two lesions were significantly more likely to report a poorer OHRQoL. Presenting with pseudomembranous candidiasis or erythematous candidal lesions, being female, and having visited a dentist in the last year were significantly associated with a poorer OHRQoL. sion andidal lesions were the most strongly associated with a poorer OHRQoL among the studied adult South African population living with HIV/AIDS.