Uma aproximação da relação entre saúde bucal e determinantes sociais: um estudo da relação entre indicadores de saúde-doença bucal e índice de vulnerabilidade à saúde em usuários do SUS-BH.

Abstract

The study presents an analysis of the oral health conditions in the city of Belo Horizonte - Minas Gerais, The data were collected from basic oral health surveys, accomplished as a routine at the local oral health programmes from the Health Care Delivery System in Belo Horizonte (SUS-BH). The data were based on the clinical examination of 53.155 people attended in the health care system during the year of 1998. The results of the oral health survey show the oral disease status and treatment needs related to the main problems in oral health: dental caries, periodontal disease, fluorosis, malocclusion and oral mucosa and bone lesions, analyzed according to the age and local of attendance. The study confirms the disease trends of declining dental caries in the population, especially at the ages of 6 to 15. However, the results show significant differences among the population involved at the study. The mean DMFT found at the age of twelve was 3,21 with a standard deviation of 3,18. Comparisons were made between some indicators of theoral health (percentage of people caries-free, percentage of people with no need of restorative treatment, average of needs of restoring treatment for decay, and average of extracted permanent teeth) and the "health vulnerability" index, which was created by the institution, based on the socio-demoghrafic information, and is used as a tool of health planning. The general analysis of the data does not show a correlationbetween the indicators of oral health and the "health vulnerability" index. However, some relationship can be found when these comparisons are accomplished being used homogeneous units of people's residence. The work stands out for the importance of using dental epidemiology as a method for the enhancement of oral health care services and the need of changes in the process of work of the oral health team. The studyt shows the limits of the indicators traditionally used for evaluation of the oral health status of the population, as well as it suggests the needof accomplishment of new studies in the sense of its transformation anddevelopment.