RESUMO
Aim: To investigate the relationship between oral candidiasis and users of dental prostheses. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out which the inclusion of adults and elderly people of both genders using dental prostheses. Lectures were given with guidelines on oral hygiene techniques and dental prostheses, preventive measures of candidiasis, highlighting their influence on the oral and general health of the individual for the 240 users of dental prostheses. Of this number, 153 did not want to participate in the clinical examination. Signals and symptoms were analyzed in 87 patients, and lesions were present in only 21, and a cytological complement of the lesions was performed. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 15.0 with Chi-square (χ2 ) test at p < 0.05. Results: The 21 patients presented oral candidiasis, with erythematous (prosthetic) stomatitis being the most prevalent. There was a correlation between the presence of Candida and the use of prostheses (p- value 0.00*). Candidiasis was associated with poorly adapted prostheses, poor oral hygiene, inadequate prostheses and prolonged use of them. Conclusion: There was a correlation between oral candidiasis and users of dental prostheses. The most prevalent type of candidiasis was erythematous stomatitis (prosthetic), and nystatin was used to treat all cases. The preventive activities carried out were extremely important, since patients were not aware of oral candidiasis and the factors that trigger it, such as poor oral hygiene and dental prostheses