Resumo

COIMBRA, Marcelo Bacci et al. Relationship between dental caries risk and socioeconomic and demographic variables in users of the Family Health Strategy in the city of Amparo, SP: a longitudinal study. Arq. Odontol. [online]. 2012, vol.48, n.3, pp. 142-150. ISSN 1516-0939.

Aim: To evaluate the effect of socioeconomic and demographic variables on changes in the DMFT index and caries risk classification among adults and elderly of the Family Health Units in Amparo, SP. Materials and Methods: The sample consisted of 109 individuals born before 1989 and whose last dental treatment had been completed in 2003 with a subsequent evaluation in 2010. The risk criteria for dental caries used in this study were those proposed by the Health Department of the state of São Paulo, Brazil. To investigate the association between the dependent variables (risk and DMFT) and the independent variables (age, income, number of people in the family, education level, housing, car ownership, career counseling, access to health services, and reason for the visit) a bivariate analysis was performed by applying the Chi-square test. After, the Poisson's multiple regression was performed. Results: A significant increase in the mean DMFT could be observed in all age groups between 2003 and 2010. In relation to the risk for dental caries, 49 individuals remained at or moved to moderate risk, 55 remained at high risk, while 5 migrated to moderate to high risk. A significant association could be identified among the variable risk for dental caries with DMFT, access to health service, and the reason for the visit. In addition, individuals who had access to private services presented a lower risk of developing increased DMFT than those without access. Conclusions: Access to private dental services reduced the risk of increase in DMFT . The past caries experience, represented by higher DMFT values, influenced the current risk of caries in this population.

Palavras-chave : Epidemiology; Primary health care; Oral health.