The oral health and oral health-related quality of life status in state institutionalised older adults in Malta

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the study was to develop a reliable and valid Maltese version of 3 internationally-reliable and valid oral health related quality of life (OHQoL) questionnaires to determine the oral health status and oral health related quality of life of older adults. METHODS: The items of the 3 questionnaires (OHIP-14, GOHAI and Denture Satisfaction) were translated into Maltese and back translated into English to prepare with the original version. Specific sampling of a population well versed in Maltese and English was carried out to obtain a sample of respondents for each questionnaire (OHIP-14 n=54, GO HAI n=51, Denture Satisfaction n=51 ). Data was gathered through self-administered questionnaires, administering first the English version, followed by the Maltese version one week later. A random sample of 278 older adults with an average age of 83.5 years± 6.5 years from 9 state institutions participated in the study. Participants were both clinically examined and answered a questionnaire for socio-demographic, medical and OHQoL data. RESULTS: Cronbach's alpha for all the three questionnaires was high (>0.7) indicating satisfactory test-retest reliability of the instruments.