Conditions and Perceptions of Oral Health in Brazilian Pregnant Women

Objective: To identify the prevalence of caries and periodontal diseases, and factors associated with caries and perceptions of dental care by pregnant women, before and after the educational intervention. Material and Methods: 121 pregnant women from the municipality of Matozinhos (Minas Gerais State, Brazil) participated in this study. Caries and periodontal diseases, sociodemographic characteristics, and access to dental service were evaluated. Perceptions were analyzed before and after the action of operative groups. In addition to descriptive statistical analysis, the DMFT index, dichotomized by the median value, was associated with family income and perceptions of treatment need and health, using the Pearson's and linear trend chi-square tests. The McNemar's chi-square test was used for comparisons before and after educational interventions. A significance level of p<0.05 was used. Results: The DMFT was equal to 12.00 (+/-6.33), with 52.2% of carious teeth. Most of the pregnant women showed some level of periodontal disease or dental calculus. Caries was neither associated with family income (p=0.469) and need for dental treatment (p=0.161) nor with health perception (p=0.506). There was an improvement regarding the perception of dental care during pregnancy after educational intervention (p<0.001). Conclusion: The conditions of oral health and oral health care in pregnant women are worrisome. Educational interventions improved the perceptions of dental care, and they pointed out the need dentists have as effective members of the prenatal team.