Spencer AJ*, Do L, Jokovic A

An understanding of the oral health-related quality of life of children is in an early stage of development. The recently available Child Perception Questionnaire (CPQ8-10 for 8-10-year-olds, CPQ11-14 for 11-14-year-olds) and corresponding Parental Perception Questionnaire (PPQ) have mostly been tested in convenience patient samples. Therefore, little is known about oral health-related quality of life of the child population. Objective: To test the useability of CPQs and PPQ in general population. Methods: A random sample of South Australian children aged 8 to 13 years in 2003 were selected, stratified by residential location. Children were approached with an age-relevant CPQ. A uniform PPQ was used for all parents. Global questions of self-rated oral health and impact of oral health on quality of life were also used. Mean domain scores were calculated. Cronbach's alpha was used to test internal consistency of each domain. Correlation between parental and children responses were tested. Construct validity was tested by Spearman rank correlation between domain scores with global ratings of oral health and its impact. Result: There were 374 CPQ8-10, 468 CPQ11-14 and 842 PPQ valid responses. A wide range of responses was observed for all domains. Cronbach's alpha of the four domains of CPQs and PPQ ranged from 0.65 to 0.93 (p<0.01). Spearman rank correlations with the global rating of oral health ranged from 0.13 to 0.40 (p<0.01) and with impact on quality of life ranged from 0.24 to 0.41 (p<0.01). There were moderate-to-strong correlations between PPQ domain scores with scores of corresponding domains of either CPQ8-10 or CPQ11-14. Conclusion: CPQs and PPQ showed acceptable internal consistency and validity when used in a general child population. These questionnaires are valid in the measurement of the impact of oral health on quality of life of the child population. Supported by University of Adelaide and ADRF.