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Healthcare

Healthcare is an international, scientific, peer-reviewed, open access journal on health care systems, industry, technology, policy, and regulation, and is published semimonthly online by MDPI.
The European Medical Association (EMA), Ocular Wellness & Nutrition Society (OWNS) and Italian Society of Nephrology Nurses (SIAN) are affiliated with Healthcare and their members receive discounts on the article processing charges.
Indexed in PubMed | Quartile Ranking JCR - Q2 (Health Policy and Services | Health Care Sciences and Services)

All Articles (14,897)

  • Feature Paper
  • Article
  • Open Access

Dental Anxiety and Oral Health-Related Quality of Life Among Adults in the United Arab Emirates: A Cross-Sectional Study

  • Nada Tawfig Hashim,
  • Muhammed Mustahsen Rahman and
  • Shahista Parveen Dasnadi
  • + 6 authors

Background: Dental anxiety is a common psychological condition that may influence patients’ perceptions of oral health and well-being. Although its association with oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) has been widely studied internationally, evidence from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) remains limited. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the association between dental anxiety and OHRQoL among adult patients attending an academic dental clinic in the UAE. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among adult dental patients using a non-probabilistic sampling approach. Dental anxiety was assessed using the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS), and OHRQoL was measured using the Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14). Descriptive statistics and nonparametric tests were used for bivariate analyses. Multiple linear regression was applied as an exploratory approach to assess adjusted associations between dental anxiety and OHRQoL after accounting for age and gender. Results: Higher dental anxiety scores were independently associated with poorer OHRQoL after adjustment for age and gender. Bivariate analyses showed no statistically significant differences in dental anxiety or OHRQoL scores between men and women; however, subgroup comparisons should be interpreted cautiously given the sample size. The findings indicate a consistent association between higher anxiety levels and greater perceived oral health impact within the study population. Conclusions: Dental anxiety was associated with impaired oral health-related quality of life among adult dental clinic attendees in the UAE. These findings reflect associations observed within a modest, non-probabilistic, cross-sectional sample and should not be interpreted as causal or generalized to the wider population. Further longitudinal and population-based studies incorporating clinical and contextual variables are needed to clarify temporal relationships and strengthen external validity.

15 January 2026

Jittered scatterplot illustrating the association between Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) scores and OHIP-14 total scores. Each point represents an individual participant, with jitter applied to reduce overlap of discrete questionnaire scores. The figure illustrates co-occurrence patterns and does not imply causality.

Background: In recent years, electronic patient-reported outcome (ePRO) systems on electronic devices, such as smartphones, have been employed to collect patients’ self-assessments and symptom reports. However, these studies were limited to younger populations and patients with severe diseases. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the ease of use and response continuity of an ePRO system used by healthy middle-aged and older adults. Methods: This prospective observational study included participants aged 40–74 years undergoing specific health checkups. The System Usability Scale (SUS) was used to assess ePRO usability. Response continuity was evaluated by assessing EuroQol 5-Dimensional 5-Level responses once a month for up to 3 months after the health checkup date. Results: Eleven participants, aged 47–73 years, participated in the study. The mean SUS on the screening date was 59.1 (95% CI: 50.0–68.1; a cut-off of 70 indicated “useful”). However, only one participant failed to complete the ePRO at one and two months post-examination, and responses were obtained from all participants at three months. Conclusions: Due to the small sample size, usability as measured by the SUS should be interpreted descriptively. While initial onboarding appeared to be a major implementation barrier, sustained monthly ePRO reporting over 3 months was achievable among participants who completed registration with support, suggesting the conditional feasibility of response continuity in this preventive health checkup setting.

15 January 2026

Expanding longevity, together with a decrease in mortality, leads to an increase in the older population worldwide. In this review, ageing and older adults, as well as psychosocial and advanced technological interventions, will be discussed. Older adults are associated with an increased incidence of multimorbidity and disability; thus, they have a higher demand for health services than younger individuals. Challenges in welfare services and inadequate family and community-based care support negatively impact the psychosocial and economic wellbeing of older people. Active ageing and successful ageing are crucial aspects for a better quality of life in this age group, as there is a complex interplay of different domains and disease types that influence quality of life in older adults. Additionally, promoting the social participation of older adults is vital for improving their quality of life. Furthermore, the use of technology in older adults has a positive impact on their quality of life; however, aside from the promotion and implementation of technological interventions, challenges persist at all levels of acceptance and use. A better understanding of these challenges and implementing measures to overcome them will have a significant impact on the technological acceptance of older adults and their use in daily life activities, resulting in more favourable quality of life outcomes.

15 January 2026

Background: Language barriers remain a major obstacle to equitable healthcare access for immigrants and refugees across Europe. Greece, as both a transit and host country, faces persistent challenges in providing linguistically and culturally appropriate care. Methods: This study presents a narrative literature review synthesizing international, European, and Greek evidence on the effects of limited language proficiency, professional interpretation, and intercultural mediation on healthcare access, patient safety, satisfaction, and clinical outcomes. Peer-reviewed studies and selected grey literature were identified through searches of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and CINAHL. Results: The evidence consistently demonstrates that the absence of professional interpretation is associated with substantially higher rates of clinically significant communication errors, longer hospital stays, increased readmissions, and higher healthcare costs. In contrast, the use of trained medical interpreters and intercultural mediators improves comprehension, shared decision-making, patient satisfaction, and clinical outcomes. Comparative European data from Italy, Spain, Germany, and Sweden show that institutionalized interpretation systems outperform Greece’s fragmented, NGO-dependent approach. Greek studies further reveal that limited proficiency in Greek is associated with reduced service utilization, longer waiting times, and lower patient satisfaction. Conclusions: This narrative review highlights the urgent need for Greece to adopt a coordinated, professionally staffed interpretation and intercultural mediation framework. Strengthening linguistic support within the healthcare system is essential for improving patient safety, equity, efficiency, and the integration of migrant and refugee populations.

15 January 2026

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Healthcare - ISSN 2227-9032