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The objective was to investigate the experience and severity of dental caries, from the medical records of children who visited the Children's Dental Clinic of a Faculty of southern Brazil, for four years. A cross-sectional study was carried out by analyzing 262 medical records containing information sociodemographic, as well as clinical oral data, to investigate dental caries. Amongst all children included in study, 226 (86.3%) had some teeth with experience of dental caries and 161 (61.5%) had three or more dental caries. The mean dental caries in children aged between 6-8 years was 5.3 ± 3.1, and the average in children aged between 9-12 years was 2.0 ± 1.9. There was association between the severity of dental caries (more than three teeth) and not using dental floss, as well as with the geographical location of residence. Older children were considered to be protected from dental caries. In this study, the experience of dental caries was high, especially in primary teeth, and variables such as the geographical location of residence, absence of flossing were related to the greater severity of dental caries.

To verify the presence of periodontitis, its severity, and their association with associated factors based on medical records of patients who attended the Dental Clinic of the Faculty of Southern Brazil over 4 years. This is a cross-sectional study, which included 422 medical records of patients aged ≥ 18 years. The clinically analyzed data were: plaque index (PI), bleeding on probing (BOP), probing pocket depth (PPD), and clinical attachment level (CAL). Sociodemographic data, dental hygiene, harmful habits and chronic systemic diseases were described. Statistical analysis of binary logistic regression was used to verify the relationship between the severity of periodontitis and the exposure variables. The older adults [odds ratio (OR) = 2.36; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.23-4.54 – 41 to 55 years and OR = 3.0; 95% CI: 1.49-6.09 – 56 to 87 years], and men (OR = 1.9; 95% CI: 1.18-3.14) showed higher chances of periodontitis severity. Smokers (OR = 3.54; 95% CI: 2.05-6.12), those with hypertension (OR = 2.11; 95% CI: 1.23-3.63) and with diabetes (OR = 2.10; 95% CI: 1.08-4.12) showed higher chances of developing advanced periodontitis. Advanced or severe periodontitis occurred in one-third of the patients. The findings showed that men, older adults, with systemic arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and smokers are more susceptible to severe periodontitis.

Periodontal disease is a multifactorial oral health problem that may be associated with several risk factors. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence rates of risk factors and socioeconomic aspects of patients with periodontal disease. One-hundred and twelve patients underwent the application of a socioeconomic questionnaire and intraoral examinations. The later was founded in the search and registration of gingival bleeding, dental calculus and periodontal pockets. In a multivariate analysis using the Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detection (CHAID), the clinical findings were tested for their association with socioeconomic information, such as patient’s level of education. Gingival bleeding, dental calculus and periodontal pockets were detected in 82.1, 88.4 and 38.4% of the sample, respectively. Patients with lower level of education presented higher rates of gingival bleeding (p = 0.018), calculus (p = 0.001) and periodontal pockets (p = 0.001). Other socioeconomic factors, such as age, knowledge of oral hygiene tools, and access to dental services also showed statistically significant associations with periodontal diseases (p < 0.05). These outcomes corroborate with most of the previous scientific literature. In practice, they may contribute to the development of oral health care strategies to reach more effectively populations in need for optimal dental services.