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© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Background: Adolescents’ quality of life is reported to be significantly associated with physical and social wellbeing. Although adolescents are 30% of the Southern African population, no previous studies have focused on this group in relation to oral health and quality of life. Methods: A 40-item survey and clinical oral examinations were conducted in public schools in Maseru from 10 to 25 August 2016. Simple, bivariate, and multivariate regressions were used to evaluate the associations of oral health and psychosocial factors with self-reported general health status and quality of life. Results: A total of 526 participants, aged 12–19 years old, responded to the survey and participated in the clinical examinations. The majority reported a good (good/very good/excellent) quality of life (84%) and general health (81%). Bivariate results showed that self-reported general health in this population was significantly influenced by age. The presence of toothache and sensitivity in the adolescents were significantly associated with poor (fair/poor) self-reported general health and were found to be the best predictors for self-general health and quality of life. Conclusions: The absence of dental conditions such as toothache and tooth sensitivity can lead to a better perception of general health and Quality of Life in adolescents.

Details

Title
Oral Health and Psychosocial Predictors of Quality of Life and General Well-Being among Adolescents in Lesotho, Southern Africa
Author
Jessani, Abbas 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Choi, Jonghm 2 ; El-Rabbany, Abdul 2 ; Lefoka, Pulane 3 ; Mir Faeq Ali Quadri 4   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Laronde, Denise M 5   VIAFID ORCID Logo 

 Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 3K7, Canada 
 College of Dentistry, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5E4, Canada; [email protected] (J.C.); [email protected] (A.E.-R.) 
 Faculty of Health Sciences, Nursing Department, National University of Lesotho, Maseru 180, Lesotho; [email protected] 
 Dental Public Health, Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Jazan University, Jizan 45142, Saudi Arabia; [email protected] 
 Oral Biological and Medical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z3, Canada; [email protected] 
First page
582
Publication year
2021
Publication date
2021
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
22279067
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2554474666
Copyright
© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.