Changes in Oral Health-Related Quality of Life Following Restorative Dental Treatment of Untreated Dental Caries: A Prospective Study in the Saudi Population.

PURPOSE: The effect of restorative dental treatment on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) and general well-being in Saudi adults is not well-documented. This study therefore evaluated the sensitivity of the OHIP-14, OIDP, and WHOQOL-BREF instruments in capturing changes in OHRQoL and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) after restorative care for caries.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

Between September 2024 and March 2025, a prospective longitudinal cohort of 269 adult patients with untreated caries was recruited from Jouf University Dental Clinics in Saudi Arabia. Standardized restorative protocols were followed for all treatments. The three validated Arabic version of OHIP-14, OIDP, and WHOQOL-BREF instruments were used to assess the quality of life at baseline and at a one-month follow-up. To examine discriminant validity, responsiveness of the instruments, and factors predicting therapeutic change, statistical analysis involved paired and independent t-tests, effect size calculation (Cohen's d), and multiple linear regression.

RESULTS

Statistically significant post-treatment improvements were observed across all subdomians of the three instruments. Mean OHIP-14 and OIDP scores decreased markedly (20.64 to 6.81 and 7.17 to 0.27, respectively; p 0.001), while WHOQOL-BREF scores increased statistically significantly (32.53 to 43.03; p 0.001). The degree of improvement was linked to initial caries severity. Therefore, the participants having more advanced caries at the start of the study demonstrated greater responsiveness, particularly in their scores on the OHIP-14 and WHOQOL-BREF.

CONCLUSION

The restorative dental treatment of dental caries statistically significantly improves the oral health-related and general quality of life of adult patients. The responsiveness of the OHIP-14, OIDP, and WHOQOL-BREF instruments, as demonstrated by the current study findings, supports their application as robust patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) in clinical dentistry. It is recommended that these PROMs should be integrated into practice to advance a more holistic and patient-centered approach to the provision of oral healthcare.