COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE FREQUENCY OF TOOTH BRUSHING IN PATIENTS WITH PROSTHETIC RESTORATIONS AND IN HEALTHY CONTROLS

The main criterion for personal oral hygiene is the frequency of daily effective tooth brushing. The aim of the study is to establish any differences in the frequency of tooth brushing in patients with dental prostheses and in healthy controls. Materials and methods: The study was based on the informed, voluntary participation of 140 dental patients from the North-East of Bulgaria, who were divided into 2 groups, each comprising 70 individuals: a Group of patients with removable and/or fixed dentures and a Control Group including healthy volunteers without any missing or restored teeth. The patients were further divided into two Age groups: 19-32 year-olds (Young Age) and 33-90 yearolds (Middle age, Adults and Elderly). Results: The mean age of the subjects included in the study was43.5 years. The Control Group consisted of 19-year-old adolescents, and the group of patients with prosthetic constructions involved individuals aged 22-90 years (mean age 53.14 years, SD = 17.48).The participants in the Control Group tend to perform a more frequent tooth brushing as opposed to those in the Group of patients with dental prostheses (U = 628.500, p = 0.000). Under the age of 32 are 15.70% of the patients with prosthetic constructions who brush their teeth once a day. The highest percentage (60%) of participants who brush their teeth once a day is represented by middle-aged and adult individuals, followed by patients brushing their teeth twice a day who are also of the same age group (24.30%). Conclusion: The frequency of oral care is poor in patients with a prosthetically restored masticatory apparatus (up to once daily) compared to healthy volunteers.