Avaliação de hábitos de higiene bucal e satisfação em usuários de prótese parcial removível

Abstract

Removable partial denture with clasps (RPDC) restores partially toothless areas, coupled to the chewing, aesthetic and phonetic functions. In spite of progress in dentistry during the last decades, several studies indicate that mouth hygiene of RPDC patients is rather low. Current analysis verifies the hygiene of dentures and mouth cavity and the satisfaction level of patients with RPDC attended by the dentistry school of the Universidade Federal do Ceará, Brazil. Methods: The descriptive and quantitative study comprised a questionnaire to 31 RPDC users. Data were analyzed by χ2 test and expressed in absolute frequency at 95% confidence level. Most subjects (77.4%) were female, aged between 40 and 60 years (64.5%), with complete college. They had received hygiene directions after the installation of the denture (96.8%). The hygiene method most employed was mechanical brushing with dentifrice, three or more times a day, for 71.0% of the interviewed. Caries was the main etiological factor in teeth loss with a significant difference related to the satisfaction degree of patients with the prosthesis. Most subjects were highly satisfied with the treatment even though there were flaws in the execution of mouth and denture hygiene.