Quality of Life and Osteoporotic Alterations in Patients with and without Low Bone Mineral Density: A Retrospective Study

Purpose: The objectives of this investigation were to compare the World Health Organization abbreviated instrument for quality of life assessment (WHOQOL-bref) scores of osteoporotic and non-osteoporotic Brazilian patients and to evaluate the correlation between mandibular cortical index (MCI) and bone densitometry (DXA) results in both groups. Methods: This research was conducted with an initial sample of 74 female participants who underwent panoramic radiography and forearm densitometry. Participants were divided into two groups: osteoporotic and non-osteoporotic patients. A quality of life assessment questionnaire was administered. The scores from the questionnaire were compared between the two groups and the correlation between DXA and MCI was analyzed. Results: Psychological and social domains in osteoporotic patients presented lower scores (12.65 and 6.00 respectively) when compared to non-osteoporotic patients (14.70 and 13.97 respectively). MCI was inversely correlated with DXA. Conclusions: According to WHOQOL-bref, osteoporotic patients may have lower quality of life scores when considering psychological and social relationships. MCI is inversely correlated with T-scores but demonstrates greater correlation when considering non-osteoporotic patients with higher T-score values.