IMPACT OF DENTAL CARIES AND PAIN ON CHILDREN’S ORAL HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE: A PRELIMINARY STUDY The Malay language Child Oral Health Impact Profile–Short Form 19 (ML COHIP-SF 19) is a validated self-administered questionnaire designed for a wide age range of children to measure the impact of clinical conditions on the children’s oral health-related quality of life. This study aimed to compare the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) between children with and without dental caries, and between children with and without dental pain among children aged 9-to-16-year-old using the newly validated Malay language COHIP-SF 19 (ML COHIP-SF 19) questionnaire. Children who aged 9-to-16-year-old, attended the Faculty of Dentistry, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) and Al Amin Tropicana School Sungai Buloh, Malaysia, who understood Malay language were invited to participate in this cross-sectional study. Those with low literacy in Malay language or presented with acute dental abscess and/or fistula, cognitively impaired, or had other chronic illnesses were excluded. After informed consent and assent were obtained, the children were invited to complete a questionnaire consisting of demographic details, ML COHIP-SF 19, and Faces Pain Scales-Revised. Subsequently, the children underwent dental examination. Dental caries were documented using the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS). Data were statistically analysed using an independent t-test, Spearman’s correlation test and multiple regression analysis. Although not statistically significant (p=0.34), children with dental caries were found to have a lower mean total ML COHIP-SF 19 score (52.83±8.74) compared to children without dental caries (55.11 ±11.10). The prevalence of pain experience among the children was 52.9%. Children with dental pain had a significantly (p<0.01) lower mean total ML COHIP-SF 19 score (50.57±9.40) compared to those without dental pain (57.79±9.33). Besides, males (β=-4.65, p=0.03), younger children (β=-1.26, p=0.02, those without previous pain experience (β=-4.64, p=0.03), and children who rated their oral health status more positively (β=4.46, p<0.01) had better OHRQoL. Children who had no previous dental pain demonstrated better OHRQoL compared to those with a history of dental pain. Besides, no significant differences in OHRQoL were observed between children with and without dental caries.

​The prevalence of Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is increasing worldwide and many of these affected individuals remain unidentified. Undiagnosed T2DM may impose substantial public health implications because these individuals remain untreated and at risk for complications. The objective of this study was to determine the national prevalence of undiagnosed T2DM and to identify the associated risk factors. A nationwide cross-sectional study was conducted involving 17,783 respondents. Two-stage stratified sampling design was used to select a representative sample of the Malaysian adult population. Structured validated questionnaires with face to face interviews were used to obtain data. Respondents, who claimed that they were not having diabetes, were then asked to perform a fasting blood glucose finger-prick test by Accutrend GC machine. The prevalence of undiagnosed T2DM was 8.9% (n=1587). The highest percentage of undiagnosed T2DM was found among males (10.2%), 55-59 years old (13.4%), highest education attainers of primary school (11.1%), Indians (10.3%), married (10.3%), working (8.9%) and living in the urban areas (9.2%). Multivariate analyses showed that factors associated with undiagnosed T2DM were gender, age group, ethnicity, marital status, obesity and hypertension. This study found an increasing trend of undiagnosed T2DM in Malaysia compared to 2006. This finding is alarming as risk factors associated with undiagnosed diabetes were related to most of the socio-demographic factors studied. Therefore, early diabetic screening is crucial especially among adults aged 30 and above to prevent more serious complications of this disease.​