Background: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of negative impacts of oral health conditions on the quality of life of quilombola and non-quilombola rural adolescents and identify associated factors.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out in a rural area in the countryside of Bahia, Brazil, in 2015. Participants were asked to complete the Oral Impacts on Daily Performance Questionnaire. Prevalence and prevalence ratios (PR) were estimated together with their respective 95% confidence intervals. Multiple analysis was conducted using Poisson regression with robust error variance and hierarchical entry of variables.
Results: Of the 390 rural adolescents who took part in the study, 42.8% were quilombolas, and 45.6% of all participants reported a negative impact of their oral health conditions on their quality of life. The most prevalent impact was difficulty eating (32.6%). After adjusted analysis, the following factors were found to be associated with the negative impact of oral health conditions on quality of life: age (PR = 1.04), feeling lonely (PR = 1.42), worst evaluation of oral health (PR = 1.52), need of dental care (PR = 1.33), and occurrence of toothache in the last 6 months (PR = 1.83). Quilombolas and non-quilombolas presented with a different prevalence of discomfort when brushing their teeth and had different factors associated with the negative impact of oral health conditions on their quality of life. Both quilombola and non-quilombola rural adolescents showed a high prevalence of negative impact of oral health conditions on their quality of life.
Conclusions: These results support the need for improved oral healthcare for specific populations like the quilombolas. Furthermore, the results illustrate the importance of incorporating oral healthcare strategies that take into consideration the sociocultural context of adolescents.
Keywords: Adolescents; African continental ancestry group; Oral health; Quality of life; Rural health.