Is there a correlation between oral health-related quality of life and oral health literacy?

BACKGROUND an‎d AIM: Oral health literacy (OHL) and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQOL) are two important current scales for oral health. The aim of the present study was to investigate the correlation between these two scales and explore the clinical indices for dental caries and periodontal disease in this association. METHODS: A total of 470 subjects were included in the present study. A total of 51 (10.58%) subjects filled the questionnaire incompletely; therefore, finally, the data of 419 questionnaires were analyzed. Volunteer patients attending dental clinics in Kerman, Iran, enrolled in the study. Data were collected via Oral Health Literacy Adult Questionnaire (OHL-AQ) for OHL, Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) for OHRQOL, and calculation of Decayed, Missing, and Filled Teeth (DMFT) and Community Periodontal Index (CPI) after clinical examination. The questionnaires were standardized in Persian and their validity and reliability were confirmed. The association of OHL with OHRQOL, CPI, and DMFT was quantified using Pearson’s correlation coefficient. RESULTS: Finally, 419 participants enrolled in the investigation. Reported OHL was poor (48.92%) and the score was 9.23 ± 3.39 (the overall score range of the questionnaire was 0-17). The OHIP-14 mean score was 10.10 ± 8.20 (the score range of the OHIP-14 questionnaire was 0-56) There was no significant association between OHL and OHRQOL; however, there was a relationship between DMFT and CPI (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: In this sample, we did not find a correlation between OHL and OHRQOL. However, considerable low OHL in this study denotes to necessary take care of.