Oral health in the population held at the third district house of rebibbia

BACKGROUND: The Third District House is a weakenedcustodial institution that houses drug addicts who want toparticipate in a recovery and rehabilitation program. The aimof the study is to evaluate the state of oral health of prisonersand the impact it has on the quality of life, bearing in mind thatthe problems related to the oral cavity are the most frequentamong those associated with drug abuse.METHODS: Three different questionnaires were used, administered in a face to face interview mode: EGOHID II - FullStandard Clinical Survey From 2007, which collects clinicaldata such as CPI and DMFT; Questionnaire OHIP-14, whichassesses the quality of life in relation to oral health and theEGOHID Adult Questionnaire which collects data on varioushabits and lifestyles.RESULTS: The survey was attended by 29 of the 32prisoners present, with a compliance of 91%. The age ofthe participants ranges from 23 to 62 years, with an averageage of 42.9 years. The population examined resultsto have a lower level of education and disadvantagedsocio-economic conditions compared to the free Italianpopulation. Furthermore, the survey showed that almostall the participants use tobacco; that 10 out of 29 prisonersare infected with Hepatitis C and 4 of them also haveco-morbidities with HIV. The high incidence of these diseasesis linked to substance abuse that involves 100% ofthe population, in which cocaine is the most widely usedsubstance. Regarding the clinical data, the DMFT resultsto be equal to 15, of which the component of the decayedteeth is 5.1; that of the treated teeth 2.6 and that of themissing teeth 7.3. The latter value is probably linked tothe lack of prosthetic rehabilitation services for prisoners.The CPI (Community Periodontal Index) shows that only14% of subjects enjoyed periodontal health, while 19% hadbleeding at the survey and 25% were detected periodontalpockets with depths greater than 6 mm. Although we havefound negative oral health conditions, it seems that theyhave a low perception of the problems related to their oralcavity, not feeling any particular discomforts associatedwith them.CONCL USION S: The investigation showed that the oralhealth of prisoners is precarious and oral hygiene is very poor.In this regard, it would be advisable to promote a preventionprogram in the prison context and a course of oral healtheducation aimed at improving the care of oral hygiene andconsequently preventing the diseases related to it. To this end,it might be useful to disseminate brochures from the variousinstructions for proper home hygiene and to distribute eligibledevices in the interproximal oral hygiene penitentiaryinstitutions. This preventive program would reduce the incidenceof diseases, thereby decreasing the therapeutic interventionsfor their care and consequently their health care costs.Furthermore, it would increase the detainee’s confidence andself-esteem, thus fostering the possibility of reintegration in an easier way within society