Saúde bucal de idosos residentes em instituições de longa permanência de Belo Horizonte

Abstract

This cross-sectional study assessed the oral health of the institutionalized elderly in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. A sample of 335 individuals over 60 years of age was selected through a stratified sampling strategy. Data was collected through interviews, reviews of medical records and a clinical examination for a single researcher. The oral health was evaluated in relation to the occurrence of oral mucosal conditions, edentulousness, wearing of prosthesis, oral hygiene, caries experience and periodontal disease. The data were submitted to the descriptive analysis using the software SPSS v.12.0. One or more lesions or variations of normal were observed in 79.7% of the elderly. The most frequent oral mucosal variations of normal were varicosities (51.6%) and coated tongue (27.8%). Denture stomatitis was the most common denture-related oral lesion (15.2%). Edentulousness was observed in 74.9% of the elderly and of these 42.6% didn't wear prosthesis. Among the partially dentate (25.1%), 30.9% wore removable partial prosthesis. Bacterial plaque was present in 76.0% of the evaluated dental surfaces and 57.0% of the elderly that wearing upper removable full prosthesis presented plaque in at least one of the surfaces of the same. The DMF-T index was of 30.8 (SD=3.2), with the missing component representing 94.2%. Of the 584 exposed roots in the oral cavity, 76.0% were sound, 14.4% decayed and 9.6% filled. Missing sextants was the worst periodontal finding in the majority of the elderly (78.2%). Among the valid sextants, there was higher prevalence of 4 to 5 mm periodontal pocket (CPI=3). There are a high prevalence of oral mucosal lesions and variations of normal among the institutionalized elderly. In spite of that highly prevalent tooth loss, the prevalence of wearing of prosthesis is low. The oral hygiene of the institutionalized elderly is precarious. A high value of DMF-T reveals the caries severity and their consequences among the elderly. Among the remaining teeth, the experience of root caries is low. The periodontal disease affects the few remaining teeth, which present priority of the shallow periodontal pocket.