Quality of Life in Patients Rehabilitated with Implant-Supported Prostheses – A Systematic Review

Oral health-related quality of life can be defined as the perception of the impact that oral health has on the quality of life. The quality of life is characterized by a person’s perception of his/her social status and the activities he/she carries out in daily life, in relation to his/her standards, objectives, concerns and expectations, as well as the system of values and cultural conditions within he/she lives in. Objective: The objective of this study was to systematically review the dental literature to identify and classify relevant articles on the quality of life associated with the oral health of patients rehabilitated with implant-supported prostheses. Materials and methods: A systematic search of the literature on PubMed was performed for articles published between 2000 and 2021. The main method used was the electronic search using keywords such as: “quality of life”, “dental implant”. The articles found were subject to inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results: Following a systematic search, a total of 249 publications were identified, of which only 9 met the inclusion criteria. Discussions: A small number of studies were found to meet the inclusion criteria and to present high levels of evidence. Therefore, more research in the field is recommended, as current research on quality of life in patients rehabilitated with implant-supported prostheses is still in the development phase. Conclusions: The quality of oral health could have an impact on patients’ daily lives and dental satisfaction (satisfaction with dental appearance, pain perception levels, oral comfort, functional performance and chewing capacity). Patients’ satisfaction with their dentition has a definite impact on the quality of daily life and perceptions of oral health.