Prevalence and Associations of Xerostomia in Older Adults in Southern Brazil.

Objectives: This study investigated the prevalence and associations of xerostomia in older adults in southern Brazil.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out in Pelotas, Brazil, during 2014. A representative sample of the city's older adult population (60+) was selected.

Possible sleep bruxism and hair cortisol in children: A birth cohort study.

This study aimed to test for an association between hair cortisol, as an indicator of chronic stress, and possible sleep bruxism among children participating in the 2015 Pelotas Birth Cohort Study. Data from 3229 children were analysed. Possible sleep bruxism was identified based on caregivers' reports when the child was 4 years old.

Analysis of the Prevalence of Traumatic Dental Injuries in the Primary Dentition: Findings From a Cohort Study Involving 4-Year-Old Children From South Brazil.

Objective: To identify factors associated with the prevalence of traumatic dental injuries (TDI) in children at 4 years of age.

Methods: Participants from the 2015 Pelotas (Brazil) birth cohort were included. Demographic, socioeconomic, behavioral, and environmental data were collected through interviews and physical examinations during cohort follow-up.

Socioeconomic status in life course is associated with dental appearance dissatisfaction.

The present study aimed to investigate the prevalence of dissatisfaction with dental appearance among 24-year-old Brazilian adults and the associated factors in life course. A subsample (n = 720) of the 1982 Pelotas Birth Cohort in southern Brazil was investigated at the ages of 15 and 24 years using clinical (caries and periodontal) examinations and interviews. The outcome was dissatisfaction with dental appearance at the age of 24 years.

Can a dentin bonding agent prevent color change in regenerative endodontic procedures? An in vitro evaluation.

This in vitro study aimed to determine the efficacy of dentin bonding agents in preventing color changes following Regenerative Endodontic Procedures. One hundred twenty bovine incisors were endodontically prepared and randomly assigned to a two main factors design: application of a dentin bonding agent (Scotchbond Adper, 3M ESPE, St Paul, MN, USA) in the pulp chamber (Group 1, n=60) versus no bonding intervention (Group 2, n=60), and five levels of intracanal medication (n=12/subgroup): Triple antibiotic paste (TAP), double antibiotic paste (DAB), calcium hydroxide (CH), modified triple antibiotic paste (TAPM), and Control (CTL). Color changes were measured over 28 days at multiple time points (1, 3, 7, 14, 21, and 28 days) using the CIEDE2000 formula to calculate the color difference (ΔE00) from baseline (T0).

Educational inequalities and alcohol-related consequences in Brazil.

Aims: This study aimed to test whether the alcohol harm paradox (AHP) is observed in Brazil by investigating (i) the association between educational attainment and alcohol-related consequences (ARC) and (ii) the contribution of average alcohol volume consumed (AVC), past-month heavy episodic drinking (HED), smoking, body mass index (BMI), and depression in accounting for the disparities in ARC.

Methods: We analysed data from the 2019 Brazilian National Health Survey, a nationally representative household survey. The composite ARC outcome was considered present when an individual reported a past-year episode of activity failure, amnesia, and concern by others due to alcohol consumption.

Effect of weight satisfaction on adolescent facial and dental satisfaction.

Purpose: To investigate if facial and dental satisfaction is related to body fat percentage and body weight satisfaction.

Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was applied to adolescents from a Private School in Southern Brazil containing sociodemographic (sex and age) and self-perception variables. Adolescents were asked about their perceptions concerning dental problems.

The Alcohol Harm Paradox in Periodontitis.

Individuals of lower socioeconomic position (SEP) experience a greater rate of alcohol-related harms, yet they consume equal or lower amounts of alcohol than higher-SEP individuals. This phenomenon, called the "alcohol harm paradox" (AHP), gained attention recently, and different mechanisms have been proposed to explain it. Since both SEP and alcohol have been suggested to be associated with periodontitis risk, we conducted a secondary analysis using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2011 to 2012 and 2013 to 2014 cycles, aiming to examine 1) whether the association between alcohol consumption and periodontitis is modified by SEP and 2) the extent to which the effect of SEP inequalities on periodontitis is mediated by and/or interacts with alcohol consumption.

Structural Relationships between Asthma and Dental Caries in Children: A Birth Cohort Study in Southern Brazil.

Introduction: There is an inconclusive causal association between asthma symptoms and dental caries in the primary dentition. This study aimed to investigate, using SEM (structural equation modeling), a possible causal relation between asthma and dental caries in the primary dentition.

Methods: Using data from the 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort Study, a sub-sample of 1,303 individuals was selected.

Geocoding processes in cohort studies: methods applied in the EpiFloripa Aging.

Objective: To describe the process and epidemiological implications of georeferencing in EpiFloripa Aging samples (2009-2019).

Method: The EpiFloripa Aging Cohort Study sought to investigate and monitor the living and health conditions of the older adult population (≥ 60) of Florianópolis in three study waves (2009/2010, 2013/2014, 2017/2019). With an automatic geocoding tool, the residential addresses were spatialized, allowing to investigate the effect of the georeferencing sample losses regarding 19 variables, evaluated in the three waves.

Factors associated with periodontal diseases in pregnancy: Findings of the 2015 Pelotas Birth Cohort Study.

Although periodontal disease is common during pregnancy, little is known about socioeconomic, behavioral, or biological determinants related to clinically assessed periodontal condition during this period. We assessed the prevalence of periodontal disease and associated factors in pregnant women. This population-based survey used data used from the 2015 Pelotas Birth Cohort Study, Brazil.

Maternal depression in first 1000 days of life and early childhood caries prevalence at 48 months of age.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of maternal's depression trajectory in the first 1000 days of the child's life on the prevalence of early childhood dental caries (ECC), in a birth cohort.

Materials And Methods: All infants born in Pelotas in 2015 were identified, and the mothers were invited to participate in the cohort. A total of 3645 children were included in the study.

A social robot connected with chatGPT to improve cognitive functioning in ASD subjects.

Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs) represent a significant healthcare and economic burden for families and society. Technology, including AI and digital technologies, offers potential solutions for the assessment, monitoring, and treatment of NDDs. However, further research is needed to determine the effectiveness, feasibility, and acceptability of these technologies in NDDs, and to address the challenges associated with their implementation.

The role of differential exposure and susceptibility to heavy drinking linking income inequalities and tooth loss: An investigation of the alcohol harm paradox using a four-way decomposition analysis.

Objectives: To examine the extent to which the effect of income inequalities on tooth loss is attributable to differential exposure and susceptibility to heavy drinking in older Brazilian adults.

Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis using data from The Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSI-Brazil 2015-2016), a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling people aged 50 years and over. Causal mediation analysis based on the counterfactual outcome framework decomposed the effect of income on tooth loss mediated by heavy drinking into four components (four-way decomposition): controlled direct effect (neither mediation nor interaction), reference interaction (interaction only), mediated interaction (both mediation and interaction) and pure indirect effect (mediation only).

Validation of dysphagia perception to predict the risk for dysphagia in non-institutionalized older adults.

Background And Aims: Dysphagia is a swallowing disorder that affects mainly the older adults and can compromise quality of life, and increase the risk for malnutrition and aspiration. Early diagnosis is, therefore, essential to prevent adversities. We aimed to evaluate the validity of self-perceived dysphagia in community-dwelling older adults (60 years or older) from Pelotas, Brazil, participants in the "COMO VAI?"

Methods: The Eating Assessment Tool (EAT-10) was used as the reference tool to identify the risk for dysphagia and the self-perception of dysphagia was assessed using the following question: "Do you have swallowing difficulties?" (Yes/No).

Binge drinking and oral health-related quality of life in older adults: Socioeconomic position matters.

Objective: The objective of the study was to investigate whether the association between binge drinking and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) differs by socioeconomic position (SEP) in Brazilian older adults.

Background: The adverse health effects of alcohol consumption disproportionately affect socioeconomically disadvantaged and older individuals. Moreover, measures of binge drinking may capture different domains of the association between alcohol misuse and health that might be independent of the traditional markers of volume or frequency of consumption.

Pre-, Peri-, and Postnatal Risk for the Development of Enamel Defects in Permanent Dentition: A Birth Cohort in Southern Brazil.

The purpose of this study was to find potential risk factors associated with the occurrence of developmental defects of enamel (DDE) in permanent dentition of a birth cohort in Southern Brazil. This study is a 2004 birth cohort carried out in the city of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. A subsample of 996 children was clinically examined at 12 to 13 years of age.

Use of dental services among adults from a birth cohort in the South region of Brazil.

Objective: Measure the prevalence of use of dental services in the previous year and associated factors among 31-year-old adults from a birth cohort of 1982.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study that analyzed a birth cohort of 1982 from the city of Pelotas. In 1997, a systematic sample of 27% of the city's census sectors was defined and all households in these sectors were visited, where 1,076 15-year-old adolescents were interviewed.

[Prevalence of water intake among non-institutionalized elderly individuals in Southern Brazil].

The scope of this study was to determine the percentage of elderly individuals receiving an adequate water intake and associated factors among non-institutionalized elderly individuals in the urban area of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul. It involved a cross-sectional, population-based study carried out in 2014 with elderly participants (≥ 60 years) of the "COMO VAI?" survey. The amount of water ingested per day of the interviewees was investigated, considering the intake of at least eight glasses per day to be adequate.