Iniquidades entre adolescentes brasileiros relacionadas a raça/etnia: a cárie dentária como indicador de saúde bucal

Abstract

This thesis includes three epidemiological studies and one systematic review, which aimed to assess inequalities among Brazilian adolescents related to race/ethnicity in dental caries experience, untreated caries, missing and filled teeth, and test whether socioeconomic indicators explain the observed differences. A systematic review was conducted in PubMed and Scopus databases to evaluate the association betweenrace/ethnicity and caries experience. Data from a Brazilian National Oral Health Survey (SBBrasil) conducted in 2003 (n=16,833) and 2010 (n=5,367) were used to prevalence analysis, chi-square test, hierarchical conceptual modelling, and mediation. Between 2003 and 2010, a decrease in the prevalence of caries experience, untreated caries,missing and filled teeth between 2003 and 2010 was observed, and a persistence of inequalities related to race/ethnicity.Whites had a significant 19.4% reduction in caries experience and only 10,2% reduction in untreated caries, while among Indigenous descents and Mixed Race there was a 17,4% and 15,5% reduction, respectively, inuntreated caries. However, in 2003, African descents were 19% less likely, and in 2010, 32% more likely to have caries experience thanWhites. Although in 2003, Mixed Race and Whites had similar chances of having caries experience, in 2010, Mixed Race was 69% more likely to have caries experience than Whites. Moreover, African descents, Indigenous descents, and Mixed Race were more likely to have untreated decayed teeth than whites in 2010. Missing teeth prevalence decrease between all groups and filled teeth had a reduction of 17.2% for Whites and a rise by 14.8% for Mixed Race, being the Mixed Race in 2010, 21% more likely to have filled teeth than Whites. Hierarchical conceptual modelling analysis performed in the SBBrasil 2010 data, confirmed the association between caries experience, untreated caries, missing and filled teeth and race/ethnicity. Compared to Whites, Mixed Race and East Asian Descents were 1.44 and 1.81 times, respectively, more likely to have caries experience; Mixed Race was 1.52 times more likely to have missing teeth, and African Descents and Mixed Race were 0.67 and 0.85 times, respectively, less likely to have filled teeth. Results of mediation analysis confirmed that the observed inequalities were mediated through education and income variables. The systematic review suggested an association of racial/ethnic inequalities in caries experience, being race/ethnicity a social construct that needs to be addressed with other determinant factors to better understand and effectively address oral health inequalities. Despite the existing policies in Brazil, data analysis demonstrated a persistence in race/ethnic inequalities and that White adolescents have benefited more from the reduction of dental caries and have a better oral health condition.