Condições de saúde bucal de crianças e adolescentes em situação de rua no Brasil: revisão de escopo

Abstract

People experiencing homelessness in Brazil constitute a significant segment of the population and face long-standing challenges marked by invisibility, extreme social vulnerability, weakened family and social ties, and limited or absent access to fundamental rights. Within this context, children and adolescents are even more vulnerable, as they are exposed early to extreme situations that directly affect their physical and psychological development. Oral health is directly impacted by these conditions, with consequences that may persist throughout life, since childhood and adolescence are critical periods for the establishment of healthy habits and adequate oral health. This study aimed to map and synthesize the oral health conditions of children and adolescents in Brazil over the last 15 years, describing the main clinical findings and identifying contextual factors that may influence these outcomes. A scoping review was conducted using the databases PubMed, Biblioteca Virtual de Saúde, and Periódicos CAPES. After a concept-mapping process using DeCS/MeSH descriptors, eight articles were included. All studies were conducted with institutionalized children and adolescents, highlighting the absence of research involving those who were actively living on the streets at the time of data collection, representing an important gap in the national scientific literature. Overall, the findings indicate unfavorable oral health conditions, strongly influenced by social and structural determinants. This review underscores the need to expand and strengthen research on this topic and to adopt approaches that are sensitive to the specificities of this highly vulnerable population.