Locked mouths: Tooth loss in a women's prison in northeastern Brazil.

BACKGROUND: Prisoners, in general, exhibit unsatisfactory oral conditions, especially with regard to the large number of missing teeth and with untreated caries. The aim of this study was to assess tooth loss, use of and need for prosthetic rehabilitation, and use of dental services among inmates. A cross-sectional study involving 65 inmates was developed at the Regional Women's Prison of Campina Grande, Brazil. Data regarding sociodemographic and sentencing profile, use of dental services, dental morbidity, and self-perceived oral health impacts were investigated. Chi-square, Pearson, and Kruskal-Wallis (P < 0.05) statistical tests were used. The mean tooth loss was 11.3 teeth. Significant association between tooth loss and oral health satisfaction (P = 0.049), self-perceived need for dental prosthesis (P < 0.001), uncomfortable teeth brushing (P = 0.005), difficult speaking (P = 0.002), and difficulty in performing routine tasks (P = 0.025) was observed. It was observed that 29.2% of inmates were using some type of prosthesis, all deemed unsuitable for use, and 78.5% of inmates needed prosthetic rehabilitation. The oral health condition of the population studied was found to be poor, and prisoners showed significant tooth loss and need for dentures, with the aggravation of having tooth extraction as the major reason for seeking dental care.

Perfil enteroparasitológico dos habitantes de uma cidade do Nordeste do Brasil / Enteroparasitological profile of inhabitants from a city of Northeast Brazil

JUSTIFICATIVA E OBJETIVOS: A elevada prevalência de parasitoses em países subdesenvolvidos e em desenvolvimento, é responsável por quadros clínicos variáveis, os quais, frequentemente, encontram-se associados à diarreia crônica e à desnutrição.O objetivo deste estudo foi traçar o perfil enteroparasitológico dos habitantes de um município do nordeste do Brasil. MÉTODO: Estudo retrospectivo, com dados secundários, realizado no período de janeiro de 2009 a janeiro de 2010. Todas as informações foram obtidas por meio dos laudos dos exames coproparasitológicos.Para a análise estatística, utilizou-se os testes Qui-quadrado e Exato de Fisher, com o auxílio do programa estatístico R. O nível de significância adotado foi de 5% (p < 0,05).RESULTADOS: Observou-se que 42,07% da amostra analisada possuíam pelo menos uma espécie de parasita intestinal, além disso, que o helminto Ascaris lumbricóides e o protozoário Endolimaxnana foram os parasitas mais frequentes nesses exames positivos,com porcentagem de 6,93% e 13,59%, respectivamente. Constatou-se também que os parasitas ancilostomídeos e Giardia lamblia estiveram mais frequentes nos homens e o parasita Endolimax nana nas mulheres, e que o parasita Giardia lamblia foi o mais frequente nos pacientes menores de cinco anos de idade.CONCLUSÃO: Verificou-se ser alta a frequência de indivíduos parasitados, bem como que espécies de parasitas com potencial patogênico fazem parte do perfil parasitológico da referida população.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The high prevalence of parasitic diseases in underdeveloped and developing countries is responsible for variables clinical symptoms, which often are associated with chronic diarrhea and malnutrition. The objective of this study was to obtain the enteroparasitological profile of inhabitants from a city of Northeast Brazil. METHOD: A retrospective study using secondary data was carried out, from January 2009 to January 2010. All information was obtained through the results of coproparasitological samples. The data were processed and analyzed using the Chi-square and Fisher Exact test, of the statistical software R. The level of significance was 5 % (p < 0.05).RESULTS: It was observed that 42.07% of the sample had at least one species of intestinal parasite, the helminth Ascaris lumbricoides and protozoa Endolimax nana were the most frequently positive in these tests, with a percentage of 6.93% and 13.59% respectively. It was also found that the parasites Giardia lamblia and hookworms were the most frequent in males and Endolimax nana was the most frequent in females. The parasite Giardia lamblia was the most frequent in patients under five years old. CONCLUSION: We found high frequency of infected individuals and the parasite species with potential pathogenic are presentat the profile of this population.