Estudo retrospectivo dos fatores associados à longevidade de próteses totais. Parte II – tempo de uso e estimativa de durabilidade

This study aims at evaluating the length of service and determining critical stages that influence the longevity of the treatment with complete dentures. A hundred and three denture wearers (mean age = 65r11 years), 70 females and 33 males, treated at Araraquara School of Dentistry, were interviewed. The time elapsed from the insertion of the dentures varied between 1 and 11 years (mean time = 4.8 years). The first question was concerning the use or non-use of the dentures and, if the patient was not using the dentures anymore, it was asked how long he or she had used the dentures after the insertion. The results were analyzed through by using the Kaplan-Meier Survival Test. It was observed that the overall mean survival time of the prosthesis was 7.5 years, 8.1 years for the upper denture and 7.0 for the lower one. Survival analysis showed that 17.48% and 26.21% of the patients quit using the upper and lower dentures respectively, before the first year of use. Nevertheless, at the end of the first year of use until the end of the observation period (11 years), the cumulative survival decreased to 55.39% for the upper denture and to 46.20% for the lower denture. Additionally, the length of service and estimated survival were lower for male patients, either concerning the upper or lower dentures. It was concluded that the most critical stage for the acceptance of the dentures is the period of functional adaptation after the dentures insertion, and the length of service and estimated survival of the upper denture is greater than the lower denture, during and after the functional adaptation stage. UNITERMS Complete Dentures; edentulous patient