Functional, esthetical, and periodontal determination of the dentition in 35- to 44-year-old Brazilian adults

The aims of the present study were to evaluate oral health status among Brazilian adults aged 35 to 44 years with regard to functional dentition based on four different definitions and classify dentition configurations using a dental functional status classification system.

The sample was composed of 9564 individuals who participated in the 2010 National Oral Health Survey. The definitions were “well-distributed teeth” concept (WDT), the World Health Organization functional dentition concept (FDWHO), functional dentition classified by esthetics and occlusion (FD_Class5), and functional dentition classified by esthetics, occlusion, and periodontal status (FD_Class6). Dentitions were classified on six sequential, accumulative levels (anyone reaching level VI necessarily met the criteria on all previous levels): I—≥one tooth in each arch; II—≥10 teeth in each arch (WDT) or ≥20 teeth present (FDWHO); III—all 12 anterior teeth present; IV—≥3 premolar posterior occluding pairs (POPs) present; V—≥one molar POP bilaterally (FD_Class5); VI—all sextants with Community Periodontal Index <3 and/or loss of attachment ≤1 (FD_Class6).

The prevalence rates of the different definitions of functional dentition ranged from 42.6 % (FD_Class5) and 40.3 % (FD_Class6) to 72.9 % (WDT) and 77.9 % (FDWHO).

The oral health status of Brazilian adults exhibited considerable variation due to the different definitions of functional dentition, and less than half of Brazilian adults met all the criteria of function.

The indication and planning of prosthetic rehabilitation should not only be based on the absence of teeth but also the distribution and periodontal status of the teeth present.