Periodontal conditions in adolescents and young Brazilians and associated factors: Cross-sectional study with data from the Brazilian oral health survey, 2010.

Background: Diseases of the gingival tissues are considered a global public health problem concern. These diseases show great differences in their distribution and prevalence in the different localities investigated. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of the periodontal conditions of gingival bleeding and dental calculus in Brazilian adolescents and young people, as well as to verify the associated factors.

Materials And Methods: This is a cross-sectional population-based study that used secondary data from the National Oral Health Survey (SB Brazil 2010) performed by the Ministry of Health. This study assessed 7328 adolescents aged 12 years and 5445 young people aged 15-19 years. The characteristics of the periodontal conditions were obtained by the community periodontal index, which provided the outcome variables of gingival bleeding and dental calculus. The predictor variables were demographic, socioeconomic, and oral clinical data.

Results: The results showed a high prevalence of gingival bleeding (32%) and dental calculus (33.1%) in the individuals assessed. In addition, as observed after adjusting to the Poisson regression model, the variables of 12 years of age, no tooth loss, fewer household residents, >6 years of education, and no need for dental treatment were considered protective factors for gingival bleeding and dental calculus.

Conclusions: The variables of nonwhite skin color, certain regions of the country, and low monthly household income were considered risk factors for the outcomes. Boys presented a higher prevalence of dental calculus than girls.