Household income trajectory effect on oral health-related quality of life during the transition from childhood to adolescence

Abstract

Objective

To measure the effect of household income trajectory on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) during the transition from childhood to adolescence over 10-years.

Methods

This cohort study assessed 639 children aged 1–5 years in 2010 in Santa Maria, southern Brazil. After 10 years, the same participants were re-evaluated. Familiar household income was collected in both assessments. Four groups with different income trajectories were created by cluster analysis: “stable low income”, “decreasing income”, “increasing income”, and “stable high income”. OHRQoL was measured at follow-up using the short version of CPQ11-14. Demographic, and oral health-related information were also collected. A negative binomial regression analysis with robust variance was conducted.

Results

A total of 351 (54.9 % of the original sample) participants with household income data at the baseline and follow-up were analyzed. Socioeconomic mobility and income remained the same for most of the participants over the 10 years. Participants belonging to the "stable high income" category presented 37 % less risk of having a worse OHRQoL than participants belonging to the "stable low income" category. Groups that experienced changes in their income trajectories did not show significant changes in OHRQoL.

Conclusions

Individuals with stable high income over time were protected from having impacts on their OHRQoL. Worsening or improvement in income over time do not influence OHRQoL.

Clinical significance

Our findings indicate that socioeconomic factors impact subjective patient outcomes, which are considered a fundamental aspect of clinical practice.