Prevalence and severity of orofacial pain in pregnant women

A cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of pregnant women who were receiving dental care at a Dental School. A structured questionnaire about self-perception of oral conditions and the presence and severity of orofacial pain in the mouth or teeth in the last 6 months was applied.

RESULTS:

80 pregnant women participated in the study and, of these, 58.8% reported having a problem with their teeth, 31.3% periodontal problems, 61.3% bad taste in mouth and 62.5% bad breath. Only 22.5% of pregnant women did not exhibit any form of oral pain. The most frequently reported pains were: pain with hot/cold liquids or sweets (56.2%) and spontaneous toothache (38.8%). With regard to severity, mild and moderate pain were the most frequently reported, but there was a group of 23.8% of pregnant women with severe or very severe pain caused by hot or cold liquids and 18.8% in the same condition in relation to spontaneous pain.

CONCLUSION:

The results of this study showed that, despite the high prevalence of pain detected in the pregnant women, severity was low and referred to specific situations.

Oral health; Pain; Pregnant women

In the last six months...	Yes		No
In the last six months...	n	%	n	%
1. Did you feel spontaneous pain (no apparent cause)?	31	38.8	49	61.2
2. Did you feel toothache caused by hot/cold liquids or candies?	45	56.2	35	43.8
3. Did you have a prolonged burning sensation in the tongue or other parts of the mouth?	6	7.5	74	92.5
4. Did you feel pain in the joints of the jaw?	17	21.3	63	78.7
5. Did you feel pain while chewing?	14	17.5	66	82.5
6. Did you feel pain when opening the mouth fully?	15	18.8	65	81.2
7. Did you feel pain in the face, in front of the ear?	19	23.8	61	76.2
8. Did you feel pain around or behind the eyes?	11	13.7	69	86.3

Severity	Pain-free	Mild	Moderate	Severe	Very severe
Severity	%	%	%	%	%
1. Spontaneous toothache	61.2	10.0	10.0	11.3	7.5
2. Toothache caused by hot/cold liquids or candies	43.8	16.2	16.2	15.0	8.8
3. Prolonged burning sensation in the tongue or other parts of the mouth	92.5	3.7	2.5	1.3	0.0
4. Pain in the joints of the jaw	78.8	13.7	2.5	3.7	1.3
5. Pain during chewing	82.4	8.8	5.0	2.5	1.3
6. Pain when opening the mouth fully	81.2	11.2	3.7	2.5	1.3
7. Pain in the face, in front of the ear	76.2	7.5	6.3	6.3	3.7
8. Pain around or behind the eyes	86.2	6.3	3.7	2.5	1.3

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[1] Correspondência para / Correspondence to: FL ROSELL. E-mail: <flrosell@foar.unesp.br>