Health-Related Quality of life of Patients Surgically Treated for benign Oral and Maxillofacial Tumours and Tumour-like lesions at Muhimbili National Hospital, Tanzania
Objectives: To assess the Health-Related Quality of Life of patients diagnosed and treated for benign oral and maxillofacial tumors and tumor-like lesions at Muhimbili National Hospital, Tanzania.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional hospital-based study involving patients with benign tumors and tumor-like lesions in the oral and maxillofacial region. Sociodemographic and clinical data were collected from the patients, and a modified version of the UW-QoL questionnaire was used by inclusion of 2 domains (mouth opening and financial difficulty). Chi-square test and Friedman’s test were used for paired samples and the level of significance was set at p<0.05.
Results: 89 patients with a male to female ratio of 1:1.2. were included in this study. The age of patients ranged from 13 to 78 years (mean age 36.16 years±17.21 SD). Ameloblastoma followed by ossifying fibroma were the most common lesions. The pain site, appearance, swallowing, chewing, mood, anxiety and financial problems were significantly affected at different treatment phases. Patients with volatile income faced 3 times more financial problems than those with stable income. Patients with tumors in the mandible were 3 times more likely to complain about their appearance. Patients who underwent an ablative surgical procedures 7 times more likely to have difficulty chewing.
Conclusion: Pain, appearance, swallowing, mood, anxiety, and financial difficulty were the most important issues patients faced. The patients’ age, income, size, and location of tumor and types of surgery significantly affected the domain scores.
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