Resumo

MOTTA, Bruna Barnard; NOGUEIRA, Alex Vettori  e  TOASSI, Ramona Fernanda Ceriotti. Epidemiological profile for the need and use of dental prosthesis among users of a Family Health Unit in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Arq. Odontol. [online]. 2014, vol.50, n.4, pp. 170-177. ISSN 1516-0939.

Aim: Estimate the use and need of dental prostheses in the users of a Family Health Care (FHC) unit in Porto Alegre, in 2013. Methods: This study followed a cross-sectional design in which data collection was performed by analyzing the dental records of users of the dental care services from FHC (n = 249). The collected data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. The frequency distribution of investigated variables (gender, age, use and need of prosthesis) was calculated. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. Results: The percentage of individuals, of either gender and of the studied age, which used dental prosthesis was 19.7%, while 55% needed to use a prosthesis. The prosthesis was more frequently used in the superior maxillary arches and among women. Among women, the most commonly used prosthesis was the full denture for the maxillary arch and the partial denture for the mandibular arch, while for men the partial denture for both arches was most common. The most commonly observed age for the use of prostheses was between 65 and 74 years of age, while use out of necessity was between 35 and 44 years of age. All groups evaluated presented a greater need for mandibular than for maxillary prostheses. Conclusion: This core aim of this research was to produce information to support action strategies geared toward improving the health of the studied population by evaluating the use of and need for dental prostheses. The high percentage of the need for prostheses identified requires the consolidation of an effective dental health policy geared toward dental rehabilitation and that meets the true needs of the studied population.

Palavras-chave : Oral health.; Dental prosthesis.; Epidemiology..