Dental Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (dPROMs)

Dental Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (dPROMs) are tools that capture patients’ perspectives on their oral health directly from them, without the interpretation of others. These measures allow patients to report how their oral health affects their overall health and well-being. dPROMs can be generic or condition-specific, targeting particular population groups to assess perceptions of oral health conditions, treatment expectations, the quality of treatment received, public health care services, and other relevant aspects. The value of dPROMs is due to their alignment with Evidence-Based Dentistry (EBD), which incorporates patient perspectives and contributes to a patient-centered approach.

dPROMs play an important role in research, clinical practice, and public health and epidemiology. In research, they enhance the understanding of Oral Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) conceptual models and enable comparative studies that evaluate the effectiveness of various procedures and preventive strategies, providing insights into patient outcomes and satisfaction. In clinical practice, dPROMs facilitate the development of personalized treatment plans through the standardized assessment of patients' demands, preferences, and expectations. In public health and epidemiology, dPROMs contribute to data collection by identifying trends, disparities, and demands in OHRQoL at the population level. This information can guide public resource allocation by developing preventive strategies and prioritizing treatments for beneficiaries of public health systems.

However, using dPROMs presents challenges. First, it is essential to identify a theoretical model underlying the dPROM that is appropriate for the specific study population. Secondly, because dPROMs capture the patient's subjective aspects, analytical procedures are necessary to ensure the validity and reliability of the data collected.

This Research Topic aims to bring together studies of various designs and scopes that investigate the implementation of dPROMs in specific populations or use dPROMs to measure primary outcomes.

Potential manuscript topics we expect to receive include, but are not limited to:

•Development, translation, and cultural adaptation, as well as dimensionality and psychometric properties of dPROMs
•Investigation of conceptual theoretical models of OHRQoL
•Population-level studies on OHRQoL
•Investigation of social determinants of health related to OHRQoL
•Clinical studies comparing patient-reported outcomes across different interventions
•Application of dPROMs in real-life clinical care protocols
•Impact of dPROMs on clinical decision-making processes

Keywords: Dental Patient-Reported Outcome Measures, Oral Health-Related Quality Of Life, Evidence-Based Dentistry, Patient perception, Psychometrics

Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.