Drug addiction: self-perception of oral health

Abstract

Objective: To report the self-perception of substance-abusing individuals who were in a recovery process regarding sociodemographic conditions and general and oral health. Methods: Descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in a recovery center for drug addiction in Alfenas, Minas Gerais, Brazil, in 2015, with 39 men aged over 18 years old. Data were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire that addressed: socioeconomic status, selfperception of general and oral health, access to dental care, relationship with the dentist, and other issues. In order to assess the self-perception of oral health, the variable was dichotomized into "satisfactory" and "unsatisfactory", which refer to what the individual acknowledges as a good or poor condition of oral health, using Fisher's exact test with 5% significance level. Results: Most frequent diseases were depression, 35.90% (n=14), insomnia, 35.9%, (n=14) and recurring headache (23.1%; n=9); however, 61.50% (n=24) of the participants reported not getting sick easily, which contrasts with their self-perception. Regarding oral health, only 30.50% (n=12) of the participants reported brushing their teeth three times a day; 53.80% (n=21) had dentinal hypersensitivity; 41.00% (n=16) had dry mouth and bad breath; 30.80% (n=12) claimed to have bruxism and reported having one or more loose teeth; 28.20% (n=11) reported clenching the teeth in an exaggerated way, and 33.30% (n=13) reported feeling tooth pain. Conclusion: The self-perception of individuals -under 30 years old, single, white or mulattos -regarding their general health was contradictory, as they rated it as good but have reported depression, insomnia and weight loss; additionally, oral health was considered poor with unsatisfactory conditions, which highlights the harmful effects of substance abuse. Descriptors

Oral health‐care needs among clients receiving alcohol and other drugs treatment—A scoping review

“…In the first focus area, 23 studies were identified that included 3611 participants with a mean age ranging from 27.9 to 44 years [ 19 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 ]. The studies were conducted in Australia ( n = 2), Brazil ( n = 3), India ( n = 2), Indonesia ( n = 1), Iran ( n = 1), Ireland ( n = 2), Italy ( n = 2), Lithuania ( n = 1), Norway ( n = 1), Portugal ( n = 1), Serbia ( n = 1), South Africa ( n = 1), United Kingdom ( n = 1) and the United States ( n = 4).…”

“…The studies were conducted in Australia ( n = 2), Brazil ( n = 3), India ( n = 2), Indonesia ( n = 1), Iran ( n = 1), Ireland ( n = 2), Italy ( n = 2), Lithuania ( n = 1), Norway ( n = 1), Portugal ( n = 1), Serbia ( n = 1), South Africa ( n = 1), United Kingdom ( n = 1) and the United States ( n = 4). About half of the studies were of cross‐sectional design ( n = 14) [ 32 , 33 , 35 , 36 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 43 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 50 , 51 , 52 ]; few studies used a qualitative design ( n = 3) [ 19 , 38 , 53 ]; and the designs of remaining six studies were cohort ( n = 3) [ 42 , 44 , 45 ], case–control ( n = 1) [ 34 ], prospective longitudinal ( n = 1) [ 49 ] and pre‐post quasi‐experimental ( n = 1) [ 37 ]. In the second focus area, the guidelines identified were developed for application in Australia ( n = 2), Canada ( n = 2), Ireland ( n = 1), United Kingdom ( n = 1) and the United States ( n = 1).…”

“…None of the papers reported on oral health knowledge, attitudes or practices of AOD clinicians. Of the 23 studies [ 19 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 ], 5 reported on their oral health knowledge [ 19 , 38 , 40 , 46 , 53 ]; 5 explored their oral health attitudes [ 19 , 35 , 40 , 46 , 53 ] and all reported on oral health practices [ 19 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 ...…”

“…Only three studies reported on clients receiving oral health advice from AOD treatment services. A study in Australia found that none of the participants received oral health advice from their drug treatment service [ 38 ], whereas about one‐third (36%) of participants in a Brazilian study received counselling regarding the risk of drug use causing dental treatment needs [ 40 ]. In Indonesia, 60% of clients at one rehabilitation centre were reported to receive dental health education, although it was unclear whether this education was given at the rehabilitation centre or elsewhere [ 46 ].…”

“…Among the five studies that explored the attitudes about oral health, only two concluded that participants believed that oral health was important [ 40 , 53 ]. Nonetheless, it appeared that many participants attempted to avoid professional dental care by self‐managing oral symptoms.…”