Abstract
BACKGROUND: Pregnant women are at increased risk of oral problems due to hormonal, physical, and emotional changes during pregnancy. It is important to understand oral health and oral health related quality of life of pregnant women in Saudi Arabian context. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the self-reported oral health status and oral health-related quality of life of pregnant women in Saudi Arabia. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included adult pregnant women who visited hospitals and clinics for antenatal checkups in Dammam, AL Khobar, and Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. A pretested self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain participants' sociodemographic information, oral health status, and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). Self-reported oral health status was assessed by asking questions about oral problems. The Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) was used to evaluate participants' OHRQoL. Mann-Whitney test, Kruskal Wallis test, and multiple linear regression analyses were performed in the study. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: There were 606 participants with a mean age of 30.34±6.51 years (ages ranged from 19 to 54 years). Tooth sensitivity (59.70%), pain or discomfort with teeth (59.20%), bad breath (57.40%), and bleeding gums (56.60%) were the most common oral problems. A mean score of OHIP-14 was found to be 12.97±11.02, ranging from 0 to 45. OHRQoL was significantly related to the number of previous pregnancies (P<0.001), trimesters of pregnancy (P 0.019), and level of education (P 0.019). The participants with oral problems demonstrated significantly higher mean scores of OHIP-14 than those without oral problems (P <0.05). Multiple linear regression models showed that pain, difficulty biting foods, difficulty chewing foods, difficulty with speech, dry mouth, bleeding gums, bad breath, tooth mobility, tooth sensitivity, oral ulcers, feeling embarrassed due to the appearance of teeth, and feeling tense because of problems with teeth or mouth were significantly associated with poor OHRQoL (P <0.05). CONCLUSIONS: This study found that the majority of pregnant women experienced tooth sensitivity, dental pain, bad breath, and bleeding gums. Oral problems were significantly related to poor OHRQoL. Similarly, there were independent and significant associations between oral problems and lower OHRQoL among pregnant women.