Patient perception after oral biopsies: an observational outpatient study

Area of Science:

• Oral Surgery
• Wound Healing Research
• Patient-Reported Outcomes

Background:

• Oral mucosal biopsies are common procedures.
• Assessing postoperative healing and patient experience is crucial.
• Limited data exists on correlating clinical healing with patient-reported outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the postoperative course of oral mucosal biopsies.
• To identify clinical and patient perception variables linked to poor healing.
• To assess the reliability of patient-reported outcome measures in monitoring healing.

Main Methods:

• Eighty patients undergoing oral biopsies were studied.
• Surgical variables and harvested tissue volume were recorded.
• Postoperative discomfort was assessed using the Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14) and Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) at 6 hours, 7 days, and 21 days.

Main Results:

• A significant correlation was found between poor healing and high NRS (pain) and OHIP-14 (discomfort) scores.
• Higher OHIP-14 scores were linked to lesion type, and higher NRS scores to systemic drug use.
• No surgical variables significantly correlated with healing outcomes.

Conclusions:

• Clinical evaluation aligns with patient-reported pain and discomfort.
• Patient perception serves as a reliable predictor for biopsied tissue healing.
• OHIP-14 and NRS are valuable tools for monitoring oral biopsy wound healing.