Fluorose dentária em escolares de 12 anos / Dental fluorosis in 12-year-old adolescents

Objetivo : Determinar a prevalencia e severidade de fluorose dentaria em escolares com 12 anos, presentes na cidade de Teresina, Piaui. Metodo : Foram selecionados por sorteio, 374 escolares da rede municipal de ensino. Os exames clinicos foram realizados nas unidades escolares por um cirurgiao-dentista calibrado (Kappa = 0,79) sob luz natural, com as criancas sentadas em carteiras escolares. Os dentes foram limpos, secos com gaze e em seguida aplicou-se o indice Thylstrup e Fejerskov para determinar a presenca e/ou severidade de fluorose dentaria. Os escolares foram questionados quanto ao numero de escovacoes diarias, ultima visita ao dentista e satisfacao em relacao a aparencia do sorriso. Resultados : A prevalencia de fluorose foi 61,5% e nao houve diferenca entre generos (p> 0.05). A maioria das criancas apresentou TF = 1 (70,9%) e os casos mais severos apresentaram TF = 4 (1,7%). O dente menos afetado foi o primeiro molar e os mais afetados foram pre-molares, segundos molares e incisivos superiores. Apenas 5% dos escolares nunca haviam visitado cirurgiao-dentista e 63% o fizeram no ano anterior. Quanto a frequencia de escovacao, 30,3% das criancas afirmaram escovar os dentes duas vezes ao dia e 57,5% tres vezes. A fluorose dentaria, nos graus de severidade encontrados, nao teve impacto na satisfacao com a aparencia do sorriso. Conclusao : A prevalencia de fluorose foi alta entre os escolares da rede municipal de ensino, porem, com grau de severidade baixo, fato que sugere que a fluorose dentaria nao caracteriza um problema de saude publica na amostra avaliada. Termos de indexacao : Adolescentes. Epidemiologia. Fluorose dentaria. ABSTRACT Objective : Assessed the prevalence and severity of dental fluorosis in 12-year-olds attending public schools in Teresina, capital of Piaui, Brazil. Methods : A sample of 374 adolescents was randomly selected from municipal schools. Clinical examinations were performed under natural light at school by a duly trained dental surgeon (Kappa = 0.79) with the children sitting at school desks. All teeth were cleaned and dried with gauze and scored according to the Thylstrup-Fejerskov (TF) fluorosis index. The students were asked how many times they brushed their teeth daily, the date of their last visit to the dentist and their degree of satisfaction with the appearance of their smile. Results : The prevalence of fluorosis was 61.5%, with no difference between the genders (p> 0.05). The TF score of most children (70.9%) was 1 and the most severe cases (1.7%) had a TF score of 4. The least affected teeth were the first molars and the most affected were the premolars, second molars and upper incisors. Only 5% of the students had never seen a dentist; 63% had seen one in the last year. Almost one-third (30.3%) of the children reported brushing their teeth twice a day and 57.5% three times a day. The degrees of dental fluorosis found in this population had no impact on their satisfaction with the appearance of their smiles. Conclusion : The prevalence of fluorosis was high among schoolchildren attending municipal schools but its severity was low. This suggests that dental fluorosis is not a public health problem in this population. Indexing terms : Adolescents. Epidemiology. Fluorosis dental.