Avaliação das próteses dentárias e percepção de saúde dos pacientes atendidos nos estágios da Policlínica de Odontologia da UEA

Abstract

Humanized prosthetic rehabilitation should consider not only the patient's clinical needs but also their perceptions, expectations, complaints, and socioeconomic conditions. Understanding these aspects contributes to a more sensitive and humanized academic training of dentists, strengthening communication and empathy during patient care. This study aimed to evaluate health perception, dental prostheses fabricated at the Dental Polyclinic of the State University of Amazonas (UEA), and expectations related to prosthetic treatment among patients undergoing rehabilitation with complete, removable partial, and fixed prostheses. The study included 11 adult patients receiving treatment in the clinical training program of the Dentistry course at UEA between the 2025/2 and 2026/1 academic semesters. Data collection was performed at three different stages: during the initial anamnesis, at the time of prosthesis installation, and after a follow-up period of three to six

months. Assessments included clinical examination of prosthetic conditions and standardized semi- structured interviews. The data were organized and analyzed using descriptive statistics. A total of

12 prostheses were fabricated and installed, including three immediate complete dentures, wo fixed dental prostheses, consisting of single crowns, and seven removable partial dentures. The sample consisted predominantly of women (72.7%), with a mean age of 59.1 ± 7.8 years. Regarding education level, high school education predominated (46%), while the average income was 2.24 minimum wages. The most frequently reported systemic conditions were cardiovascular diseases (50%), diabetes (30%), and anxiety (20%). Previous experience with prostheses varied widely, ranging from first-time users to patients with 49 years of prosthesis use. The main expectations related to treatment involved improvements in mastication (54.5%), esthetics (36.4%), and comfort (27.3%). Self-perception of oral hygiene was considered good or excellent by most participants, a finding consistent with the clinical evaluation, which identified satisfactory conditions in 95% of cases at baseline and in 87.5% during follow-up. At the time of prosthesis installation, all participants positively evaluated their prostheses. However, after three to six months of use, a reduction in satisfaction was observed in 27.27% of the patients. Regarding the quality of care provided at the UEA Dental Polyclinic, 70% of the participants rated it as excellent. Although they presented a relatively high educational level, many still perceived prosthetic treatment as financially burdensome. Nevertheless, they maintained a positive perception of their oral health and hygiene, as well as a high level of satisfaction with the care received.