Association Between Maternal Sense of Coherence and Oral Health-related Quality of Life in 3 to 5-Year-Old Children Referring to Touba Clinic in Sari, Iran

Sense of coherence (SOC) is an effective factor in health-related behaviors. Mothers' SOC can influence health and consequently the orodental health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in their children. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between mother's SOC and OHRQoL in 3 to 5-year-old children in Sari, Iran. A total of 190 children, along with their mothers, were selected out of those referring to the Touba Clinic in Sari. The SOC of mothers was assessed by Antonovsky's SOC-13 questionnaire, and the OHRQoL was evaluated using the Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale (ECOHIS). The dmft index was also used to determine the status of dental caries in children. A p-value of In this study, the mean scores of SOC, ECOHIS, and dmft index were 57.13±4.9, 13.8±0.4, and 7.4±1.33, respectively. The dmft index correlated negatively with SOC (r=-0.453, P≤0.001) and positively with ECOHIS (r=0.535, P≤0.001). In this regard, with increasing the mean dmft in children, ECOHIS scores also increased, but SOC scores in mothers decreased. The ECOHIS also had a negative correlation with SOC (r=-0.347, P≤0.001); in other words, with increasing mothers' SOC scores, the scores of quality of life also decreased. Mothers' SOC significantly affected dental caries and quality of life in their children. Therefore, with the increase in maternal SOC, OHRQoL can be improved.