Journal of Korean Society of Dental Hygiene (J Korean Soc Dent Hyg)
Original Article

Association between oral health and quality of life among adults at risk of obstructive sleep apnea

Department of Dental Hygiene, Wonkwang Health Science University

Correspondence to Sung-Lim Lee, Department of Dental Hygiene, Wonkwang Health Science University, 514 Iksan-daero, Iksan-si, Jeollabuk-do, 54538, Korea. Tel: +82-63-840-1321, Fax: +82-63-840-1269, E-mail: ymsllove@wu.ac.kr

Volume 25, Number 5, Pages 409-17, October 2025.
J Korean Soc Dent Hyg 2025;25(5):409-17. https://doi.org/10.13065/jksdh.2025.25.5.6
Received on August 14, 2025, Revised on September 05, 2025, Accepted on September 16, 2025, Published on October 30, 2025.
Copyright © 2025 Journal of Korean Society of Dental Hygiene.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0).

Abstract

Objectives: In this study, we aimed to examine the association between oral health and quality of life among adults at risk of obstructive sleep apnea using raw data from the second year (2023) of the 9th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Methods: We included a total of 1,561 participants in the final analysis. We performed descriptive statistics as well as frequency, general linear model (analysis of variance), and linear regression analyses using SPSS Statistics version 26.0. Results: The quality of life of the patients averaged 0.79±0.00. According to general characteristics, indicating significant differences according to sex, age, household income, education level, smoking, and drinking. We detected significant differences in the quality of life according to oral health related to chewing and speaking discomfort, oral examination history, toothbrushing frequency, toothache history, unmet dental care needs, and subjective oral health status. Factors influencing quality of life comprised sex, age, household income, education level, chewing and speaking discomfort, toothbrushing frequency, toothache history, and unmet dental care needs. Conclusions: Our results confirm a significant association between oral health and quality of life among adults at risk of obstructive sleep apnea and are expected to serve as foundational data for the development of future policies and intervention programs.

Keywords

Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, Obstructive sleep apnea, Oral health, Quality of life (HINT-8)

Section