Журнал общей практики

Periodontal Disease and Oral Health Literacy in Primary Care Patients

Abstract

Marina Taloyan

The cross-sectional analytical study included adult and senior participants who were drawn from Family Health Clinics in Piracicaba, So Paulo State, Brazil. A questionnaire was used to collect sociodemographic data (sex, age, skin colour, and education), behavioural data (brushing and flossing), health determinants (type and frequency of dental health services), and clinical data (pain). Intraoral examination of visible dental biofilm and the community Pediodontal Index were used to obtain data on mouth conditions. From the medical records, the systemic clinical conditions (blood glucose, glycated haemoglobin, and blood pressure) were extracted. The explanatory variable was the Health Literacy Scale (HL) (low, medium, and high). Health literacy is defined as "the ability of individuals to receive, process, and comprehend fundamental health information and services required to make good health decisions."