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Oral alterations and oral health‐related quality of life assessment in patients undergoing chemotherapy at a tertiary care center
Author(s) -
Sahni Priya,
Punyani Silky R.,
Jain Sachin,
Nayak Kailash C.,
Charan Abhishek,
Karwasra Kapil
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
special care in dentistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.328
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1754-4505
pISSN - 0275-1879
DOI - 10.1111/scd.12499
Subject(s) - medicine , tertiary care , center (category theory) , quality of life (healthcare) , chemotherapy , oral health , family medicine , intensive care medicine , gerontology , nursing , chemistry , crystallography
Aims This study was designed to assess the oral alterations and oral health related quality of life (OHRQoL) in patients undergoing chemotherapy for malignancies other than oral cancer. Methods and results Oral alterations were studied by careful clinical examination prior to and at the end of three cycles of chemotherapy in 100 patients. OHRQoL was assessed by oral health impact profile (OHIP)‐14 questionnaire. Fifty‐four patients developed oral complications among which oral mucositis and pigmentation were the most commonly observed. OHRQoL was hampered in all patients as indicated by higher postchemotherapy scores as compared to prechemotherapy scores ( P < .0001). Postchemotherapy scores were higher for patients who developed visible oral changes as compared to those who did not ( P = .001). There was a weak positive correlation between the number of oral alterations and postchemotherapy scores for OHRQoL. Conclusions Our study emphasizes the role of oral physicians in the healthcare team delivering chemotherapeutic treatment as regular oral examination, and timely symptomatic treatment is important for the overall well‐being of the patient.