Influence of socioeconomic status and home environmental factors on oral health-related quality of life among school children in north Bengaluru, India: A cross-sectional study

There is an increasing recognition that children's oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) is affected by social and environmental factors. Aim: To assess the influence of socioeconomic status and home environment factors on OHRQoL among 13–14-year-old schoolchildren in North Bengaluru. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 800 children aged 13–14 years from government and private schools in North Bengaluru. OHRQoL was assessed using a shorter version of Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ11-14). Socioeconomic status of children was measured using Kuppuswamy's scale. Children were also asked to provide information on home environmental factors. Descriptive, Chi-square, and Mann–Whitney U-tests were used to analyze data. Results: In both government and private schools, mean CPQ11-14 scores were highest for children belonging to upper lower class followed by the lower middle, upper middle, and upper class of socioeconomic status, showing statistically significant differences (P < 0.05). In government schools, children living with single parent/guardian, having two or more siblings, one or two rooms, staying with more than one person per room, family using alcohol/tobacco reported higher mean CPQ11-14 scores as compared to private schools. (P < 0.05). Conclusion: It is important to shift focus from the current biomedical and restricted paradigm on oral health and develop oral health policies and programs considering the socioeconomic status and home environmental factors in improving child OHRQoL outcomes