Title

Association between thyroid disorders and oral health: OHRQoL, KAP and self-rated oral health assessment-A structural equation modelling approach

Authors

Yamini Rajachandrasekaran¹*, R. Riya Yazhini¹, Deepika Kottai Gandhi², Sumathi H Rao¹, Shifa Fathima Shajahan¹ & Geetha Thirugnanasambandham¹

Affiliation

¹Department of Periodontics, Sathyabama Dental College and Hospital, Chennai, Tamilnadu India; ²Department of Endodontics and Conservative Dentistry, C.S.I College of Dental Sciences and Research, Madurai, Tamilnadu, India; *Corresponding author

Email

Yamini Rajachandrasekaran - E-mail: yammu.cool@gmail.com
R. Riyayazhini - E-mail: riyayazhini28@gmail.com
Deepika Kottai Gandhi - E-mail: geethdeepika@gmail.com
Sumathi H Rao - E-mail: sumiraodas@gmail.com
Shifa Fathima Shajahan - E-mail: dr.shifafathima@gmail.com
Geetha Thirugnanasambandam - E-mail: geethpap@gmail.com

Article Type

Research Article

Date

Received January 1, 2026; Revised January 31, 2026; Accepted January 31, 2026, Published January 31, 2026

Abstract

Thyroid disorders influence oral health through metabolic, immune, and behavioural changes, affecting oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). This cross-sectional study among 254 patients with thyroid disorders in Tamil Nadu evaluated OHRQoL, knowledge, attitude, practices (KAP), and self-rated oral health (SROH) using validated Tamil tools. Participants exhibited moderate knowledge and practices, positive attitudes, and moderate OHRQoL impairment. Knowledge showed positive correlations with attitude and practice but a negative relationship with SROH. Regression analysis identified knowledge, thyroid type, and disease duration as significant predictors of OHRQoL. Structural equation modelling confirmed acceptable model fit (χ²/df=3.289; RMSEA=0.095; CFI=0.907) and revealed interrelations among behavioural, perceptual, and clinical domains. Integrating oral health education and routine dental screening into endocrine care may improve oral and systemic health outcomes in this population.

Keywords

Quality of life; self-report; structural equation modelling; health knowledge, attitudes, practice; thyroid diseases; oral health

Citation

Rajachandrasekaran et al. Bioinformation 22(1): 559-565 (2026)

Edited by

Rashmi Laddha

ISSN

0973-2063

Publisher

Biomedical Informatics

License

This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. This is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.