Tooth loss and oral health impact profile in adults included in a job market

The dentistry performed in the past was to relieve pain and to restore as a treatment of teeth, resulting in tooth loss. Today, advances in techniques have got the maintenance of dental elements and consequent improvement in quality of life. This study identified the tooth loss and its impact on quality of life in adults insured in a working population. It is a pilot study (n = 29), with employees, 20 to 60 years old, from a Brazilian company in Sao Paulo. The sample was dichotomized into two age groups, the oral exams followed the recommendations of WHO and for the interview it was used the OHIP14. It was applied the Mann-Whitney test statistic (p <0.05). The mean DMFT was 13.9 (SD = 9.0), and the group high than 30 year-olds had higher DMFT (19.2) and more restored teeth (14.4), there was no difference among age groups when checked missing teeth. Adults with tooth loss due dental caries had higher OHIP14 score, which was not verifyed in who lost their teeth for other reasons. Analysing the OHIP dimensions, adults who had missing teeth due dental caries had a higher negative impact on physical pain, psychological discomfort and psychological disability, who had missing teeth for other reasons had physical pain impact; for the total missing teeth the differences were observed in the physical pain and psychological disability. The group higher than 30 years had worse oral health conditions, however regardless of age, tooth loss influenced negatively the quality of life in oral health, and physical pain was the dimension most reported. Thus, it is necessary the develop public policies to prevention tooth loss and support actions in oral health education aiming to improve the quality of life of these employed adults.