Abstract:
Objectives: To evaluate whether the severity of xerostomia in older polymedicated patients impacts oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL).
Background: Medication-associated xerostomia is common in older people. Xerostomia may impair OHRQoL.
Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study included older hypertensive patients from two health centres. We assessed the severity of xerostomia and OHRQoL using the Xerostomia Inventory (XI) tool, and the Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14) instrument, respectively. We measured unstimulated (UWS) and stimulated (SWS)
salivary flows. Univariate and multiple linear regression analyses evaluated the associations of XI and OHIP-14 and different explanatory variables.
Results: Of the 218 patients enrolled, 51.8% had xerostomia, and 38.1% and 27.5% suffered from UWS and SWS hyposalivation, respectively. Patients with xerostomia, UWS, and SWS hyposalivation scored significantly higher on the XI. However, only those with xerostomia or UWS hyposalivation had significantly higher OHIP-14 scores. A moderate correlation was observed between XI and OHIP-14 scores. The multiple regression model showed that factors with the greatest impact on XI were th...