Condições de saúde bucal de idosos institucionalizados no município de Fortaleza – Ceará

Abstract

The institutionalized population has a health profile marked by the presence of various oral health problems. To evaluate the oral health situation and its associated factors in elderly residents of the long-stay institution for the elderly (LSIE) in Fortaleza, Ceará. This was an epidemiological survey conducted in the 14 LSIE of Fortaleza, where sociodemographic and health issues of this population were evaluated as: the degree of cognition, functional capacity, mobility, continued use of drugs and diagnosed morbidities. For oral health, self-care and use of oral health services were evaluated, as well as the assessment of quality of life associated with oral health, and the performance of intraoral examinations were evaluated: dental caries; periodontal disease; edentulism, soft tissue alterations and oral cancer and dental functionality. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) statistical program, using Pearson's chi-square test or Fisher's exact test, and T-test for independent samples using a significance level of 5%. We found a high prevalence of elderly with cognition (64.2%) and mobility (55.4%) affected, as well as oral health disorders such as a high DMFT (29.4), prevalence of edentulism (61.3 %) and need for upper (89.1%) and lower (91.2%) oral rehabilitation. Edentulism was associated with sociodemographic issues such as age (p <0.001); time (p <0.001) and reason for institutionalization (p = 0.041); education (p <0.001) and income (p <0.001). Most of the elderly had a good self-perception of OHRQoL (65.9%), which was associated with factors related to missing teeth such as non-use of upper dentures (p = 0.043); and edentulism (p = 0.005). It was also found a high prevalence of elderly with low functional capacity (47.1%) that was associated with sociodemographic characteristics such as gender (p= 0.007), age (p <0.001) and income (p = 0.003); and general health as cognition (p <0.001) and mobility (p <0.001). The most dependent elderly had worse oral health conditions than the independent ones. Lower functional capacity was associated with lack of upper prosthesis (p<0.001), need for lower prosthesis (p = 0.021), and edentulism (p = 0.042). It is concluded that the evaluated elderly have a range of health problems that are associated with each other and related to the aging and institutionalization process. These problems need to be worked on to improve the quality of life of these individuals, ensuring a healthy and active aging.