Temporal trends and factors associated with satisfactory oral health coverage among municipalities in Bahia: 2001-2023

Abstract

The objective of this study was to analyze the temporal trend and the demographic and socioeconomic factors associated with satisfactory oral health coverage in Primary Health Care (PHC) among municipalities in Bahia (2001 to 2023). The ecological study evaluated two historical series for oral health coverage in PHC, considering two databases (2001 to 2018 and 2007 to 2023), with temporal analysis using the Prais-Winsten method (p<0.05). In the analytical phase, coverage was dichotomized into: satisfactory (>75%) and unsatisfactory (≤75%), in five cutouts: one before (2003) and four every five years after the implementation of the National Oral Health Policy (PNSB) (2008, 2013, 2018 and 2023). Poisson regression with robust variance was performed (p<0.05). Satisfactory coverage showed an increasing trend in the first (2001 to 2018) and second historical series (2007 to 2023) (p<0.05). Satisfactory coverage was associated with demographic factors before (2003) and after the implementation (2008, 2013, 2018, and 2023) of the PNSB, such as smaller population size and health macroregions, but was associated with socioeconomic factors only after the PNSB, such as lower municipal income and greater income inequality. The PNSB had an impact on increasing satisfactory coverage, especially among municipalities with worse socioeconomic indicators.