Oral health promotion and diseases prevention programs: Main results

Introduction: The crisis on health system and the increase on costs of health services, both based on the hegemonic health care model and market interests, have been reported by authors in several countries. Since 2004, the National Agency for Supplementary Health (ANS) a government agency tied with Ministry of Health in Brazil, develops strategies to redirect the oral health care model prevalent in private health plans.

This study aims to describe the main results of oral health promotion programs efforts by private health plans companies.

Methodology: Study with a quantitative approach, which uses, as data collection technique, an electronic semi-structured questionnaire sent to 1842 private health companies in Brazil.

Results: (1) 24.6% of the companies reported that they perform oral health programs; the main issues were oral hygiene (92.4%), dental caries (84.8%), periodontal disease (74.7%) and oral cancer (60.1%); 58.9% of the companies reported using customized guidelines; the clinical results achieved were: reduction of oral diseases (36.1%), reduction in assistential costs (25.3%), decrease in the number of tooth extractions (22.8%).

Conclusion: As an unprecedented initiative in Brazilian public administration, results evidence the positive effects of the oral health promotion programs adopted by companies and their impacts on private oral health care. Although the survey contains questions that should be more detailed and examined closely, the results achieved were innovative and appropriate to induce a new oral health care model, based on health promotion and diseases prevention.