Exploring and modelling impacts of third molar experience on quality of life: a real-time qualitative study using Twitter

Infodemiology for oral health and disease: A scoping review

INTRODUCTION

Increasing affordability, accessibility and penetration of internet services worldwide, have substantially changed the ways of gathering health-related information. This has led to the origin of concept infodemiology that allows the information to be collected and analysed in near real time. Globally, oral diseases affect nearly 3.5 billion people; thus, volume and profile of oral health searches would help in understanding specific community dental needs and formulation of pertinent oral health strategies.

AIM

To review the published literature on infodemiological aspects of oral health and disease.

METHODOLOGY

This scoping review was conducted in accordance with PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Electronic search engines (Google Scholar) and databases (PubMed, Web of science, Scopus) were searched from 2002 onwards.

RESULTS

Thirty-eight articles were included in this review. The infodemiological studies for oral health and disease were mainly used in two domains. Out of 38 articles, 24 accessed the quality of available online information and 15 studied online oral health-related information seeking behaviour.

CONCLUSION

The most commonly searched oral diseases were toothache, oral cancer, dental caries, periodontal disease, oral maxillofacial surgical procedures and paediatric oral diseases. Most of the studies belonged to developed countries and Google was the most researched search engine.

Exploring Public Perceptions of Dental Care Affordability in the United States: A Mixed Method Analysis via Twitter

BACKGROUND

Dental care expenses are reported to present higher financial barriers than any other type of health care service in the United States. Social media platforms such as Twitter have become a source of public health communication and surveillance. Previous studies have demonstrated the usefulness of Twitter in exploring public opinion on aspects of dental care. To date, no studies have leveraged Twitter to examine public sentiments regarding dental care affordability in the U.S.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to understand public perceptions of dental care affordability in the U.S. on the social media site, Twitter.

METHODS

Tweets posted between September 1, 2017 and September 30, 2021 were collected using the Snscrape application. Query terms were selected a priori to represent dentistry and financial aspects associated with dental treatment. Data were analyzed qualitatively using both deductive and inductive approaches. Ten percent of all included tweets were coded to identify prominent themes and subthemes. The entire sample of included tweets were then independently coded into the thematic categories. Quantitative data analyses included: geographic distribution of tweets by state; volume analysis of tweets over time; distribution of tweets by content theme.

RESULTS

A final sample of 5,314 tweets were included in the study. Thematic analysis identified the following prominent themes: 1) general sentiments (1614 tweets, 30.4%); 2) delaying or forgoing dental care (1190 tweets, 22.4%); 3) payment strategies (1019 tweets, 19.2%); 4) insurance (767 tweets, 14.4%); and 5) policy statements (724 tweets, 13.6%). Geographic distributions of tweets established California, Texas, Florida, New York as the states with the most tweets. A word cloud revealed that "insurance", "need", and "work" were the most frequently used words. Qualitative analysis revealed barriers faced by individuals to accessing dental care, strategies taken to cope with dental pain, and public perceptions on aspects of dental care policy. The volume and thematic trends of tweets corresponded to relevant societal events: The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and debates on healthcare policy resulting from the election of President Joseph R. Biden.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings illustrate the real-time sentiment of social media users toward the cost of dental treatment and suggest shortcomings in funding that may be representative of greater systemic failures in the provision of dental care. Thus, this study provides insights for policy makers and dental professionals who strive to increase access to dental care.

Temporomandibular dysfunction experience is associated with oral health-related quality of life: an Australian national study

Background

There are very few studies of the association between temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD) and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in a representative sample from the Asia–Pacific region. Accordingly, we aimed to quantify the association of TMD with OHRQoL dimensions and overall measurement scores in a representative sample of Australian adults while accounting for a range of confounders, and statistically estimating whether TMD experience is meaningfully associated with OHRQoL.

Method

Australia’s National Survey of Adult Oral Health 2004–2006 data were used. The outcome variables were the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) domains and overall scores while the main exposure was self-reported Diagnostic Criteria Question for TMD. The analysis accounted for confounders including oral health status obtained from the oral examination, demographics, socioeconomics, health behaviours and health including perceived stress subscales of the PSS-14. We conducted complex samples analysis while using Cohen’s f² effect size to estimate whether the association is meaningful.

Results

TMD prevalence was 9.9% (95% CI: 8.4–11.6%) among 4133 Australian adults. TMD experience was associated with impairments to the seven OHIP-14 OHRQoL domains (P < .05) with higher impairments observed in physical pain (B = 0.82, 95% CI: .45–1.20, P < .001), psychological discomfort (B = 0.68, 95% CI: .29–1.06, P = .001) and psychological disability (B = 0.52, 95% CI: .20–.84, P = .001) in adjusted multivariate analyses. The difference in the mean OHIP-14 scores for those reporting TMD (Mean = 13.1, 95% CI: 12.0–14.0) and those who did not (Mean = 6.6, 95% CI: 6.0–6.8) was significant (t = 7.51, P < .001). In an adjusted multivariable model for OHIP-14 scores, TMD experience was associated with higher OHIP-14 scores (B = 3.34, 95% CI: 1.94–4.75, P < .001) where the Cohen’s f² was .022. Further, perceived stress subscales: perceived distress and perceived control were associated with TMD experience and OHIP-14 scores (P < .05).

Conclusion

Lower OHRQoL was observed in Australian adults who reported TMD experience but with small clinical importance which might support considering TMD in regular dental care. The higher impairments observed in physical pain, psychological discomfort and psychological disability domains of OHRQL can help clinicians and researchers focus their attention on these domains. The confounding effect exhibited by the perceived stress subscale might support their inclusion in future TMD and OHRQoL research.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12903-021-01773-z.

The Impact of Prior Use of Corticosteroid to Dental Extraction on Oral Health-Related Quality-of-Life and Clinical Outcomes: A Randomized Clinical Trial

PURPOSE

To evaluate the impact of prior use of corticosteroids before dental extractions on oral health-related quality-of-life (OHRQoL).

METHODS

A randomized and triple-blind (patient, surgeon, and examiner) clinical trial was designed. The individuals were randomly allocated to 2 groups: test and placebo. In the test group, 2 capsules of 4 mg dexamethasone were administered orally. In the placebo group, subjects received 2 capsules with the same characteristics. In both groups, the administration took place 1 hour before the procedure. OHRQoL was assessed by the Brazilian version of Oral Health Impact Profile 14 (OHIP-14). The OHIP-14 questionnaire and the assessment methods for clinical parameters were collected preoperatively and postoperatively. Multilevel linear regression models fitted the associations between preoperative use of corticosteroids and overall and domain-specific OHIP-14 scores over time.

RESULTS

One hundred fourteen patients were selected for the study; however, 21 were excluded for not returning to postoperative control on the seventh day, resulting in 93 patients assessed (test = 44 and placebo = 49). The pain had a negative impact on OHRQoL (P < .01); however, the use of the drug had no statistically significant influence on OHRQoL (P = .62) and the clinical outcomes of pain (P = .63), mouth aperture (P = .05), and edema (P = .69).

CONCLUSIONS

The use of the 8 mg dexamethasone administered orally before the procedure was not effective on the improvement of the quality-of-life of patients undergoing dental extraction. However, using the medication seems to result in an improvement in the postoperative period of patients who had impacted teeth. Further research involving the analysis of OHRQoL must be performed, and other dosages and means of administration must be tested.

Reach of Messages in a Dental Twitter Network: Cohort Study Examining User Popularity, Communication Pattern, and Network Structure

Background

Increasing the reach of messages disseminated through Twitter promotes the success of Twitter-based health education campaigns.

Objective

This study aimed to identify factors associated with reach in a dental Twitter network (1) initially and (2) sustainably at individual and network levels.

Methods

We used instructors’ and students’ Twitter usernames from a Saudi dental school in 2016-2017 and applied Gephi (a social network analysis tool) and social media analytics to calculate user and network metrics. Content analysis was performed to identify users disseminating oral health information. The study outcomes were reach at baseline and sustainably over 1.5 years. The explanatory variables were indicators of popularity (number of followers, likes, tweets retweeted by others), communication pattern (number of tweets, retweets, replies, tweeting/ retweeting oral health information or not). Multiple logistic regression models were used to investigate associations.

Results

Among dental users, 31.8% had reach at baseline and 62.9% at the end of the study, reaching a total of 749,923 and dropping to 37,169 users at the end. At an individual level, reach was associated with the number of followers (baseline: odds ratio, OR=1.003, 95% CI=1.001-1.005 and sustainability: OR=1.002, 95% CI=1.0001-1.003), likes (baseline: OR=1.001, 95% CI=1.0001-1.002 and sustainability: OR=1.0031, 95% CI=1.0003-1.002), and replies (baseline: OR=1.02, 95% CI=1.005-1.04 and sustainability: OR=1.02, 95% CI=1.004-1.03). At the network level, users with the least followers, tweets, retweets, and replies had the greatest reach.

Conclusions

Reach was reduced by time. Factors increasing reach at the user level had different impact at the network level. More than one strategy is needed to maximize reach.

Third molar removal and its impact on quality of life: systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this systematic review was to assess the impact of third molar removal on patient's quality of life.

METHODS

To address the study purpose, investigators designed and implemented a systematic review. The primary outcome variable was the quality of life after third molar extraction. An electronic search was conducted through March, 2017, on the PUBMED, Virtual Health Library (VHL), Web of Science, and OVID, to identify relevant literatures. Research studies (randomized or non-randomized clinical trials) were included that evaluated the quality of life in individuals before and after third molar extraction, using validated measures of oral health-related quality of life with quantitative approach, besides procedures performed under local anesthesia. The R software was used to measure the mean difference on the quality of life between the preoperative period and follow-up days.

RESULTS

A total of 1141 studies were identified. Of this total, 13 articles were selected in the present systematic review, of which six studies were included in the meta-analysis. All of these 13 articles used the OHIP-14, and 4 of this 13 used OHQoLUK-16 to evaluate the quality of life. Regarding quality assessment, four of the 13 included studies in this review received a maximum score of 9 points, according to the Newcastle-Ottawa (NOS). The OHIP-14 mean score on the first postoperative day was 17.57 (95% CI 11.84-23.30, I² = 96%) higher than the preoperative period. On the seventh postoperative day, the quality of life assessed by OHIP-14 got worse again.

CONCLUSION

This systematic review revealed that the highest negative impact on quality of life of individuals submitted to third molar surgery was observed on the first postoperative day, decreasing over the follow-up period.

Is social media the way to empower patients to share their experiences of dental care?

BACKGROUND

Social media present opportunities to understand patient experience and information needs. In this study, the authors use hypodontia as an example to explore social media use by dental patients and how this provides for understanding patient experience.

METHODS

The cross-sectional survey design involved systematic search of 6 social media online environments with hypodontia-related terms. The authors categorized records by using a coding system for user, type and theme of post, and target audience. The authors used a thematic framework approach to analyze qualitatively the word content of posts from people affected by hypodontia (nondentists).

RESULTS

The authors searched and identified 571 records and included 467 of them in their study. The authors analyzed the content of records from people affected by hypodontia (n = 176). Themes emerged about the experience of untreated hypodontia, treatment experience and outcomes, and decision making. Content analysis provided evidence about peer-to-peer communication, areas of information need, and desire for peer support.

CONCLUSIONS

Social media communities have responded to the need for information exchange and peer support by the public. Analysis of communications helped identify a need for dissemination of understandable information to patients and improved dentist awareness of patient needs.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

Clinicians should reassess understanding and information needs actively throughout treatment and identify support needs. Clinicians should refer patients to quality information sources and peer support groups.