Production of dental prosthetics in the SUS in Brazilian older population and impact of the covid-19 pandemic

OBJECTIVE: Describe the trends in the production of dental prosthetics by the Unified Health System (SUS) in older people aged 60 years or older in Brazil and country regions from 2010 to 2019 and the impact of the covid-19 pandemic on the expected production for 2020 and 2021. METHODS: A time series study using secondary data from the SUS database (Datasus-Tabnet) and the Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics - IBGE) from 2010 to 2021. Age-standardized rates were calculated for Brazil and regions for each year analyzed. Generalized linear regressions estimated production trends using the Prais-Winstein estimation method. RESULTS: A growth trend occurred in the standardized production rate of complete dentures and other prosthetics per 100,000 inhabitants in Brazil and all country regions. The increase in the production of complete dentures was higher in the Northeast region (50.3%/year) and lower in the North region (19.1%/year). Trends in the production of other prosthetics were higher in the Southeast region (120.7%/year) and lower in the North region (24.5%/year). The output of prosthetics for both groups decreased in the pandemic years. In 2020, the relative difference ranged from -36.4% (North) to -61.7% (Northeast) for producing complete dentures and from -17.9% (North) to -68.4% (Northeast) for other prosthetics. In 2021, standardized rates and total production increased compared to the previous year. However, compared with expected values, the differences were close to those in 2020. CONCLUSION: Policies aimed at producing complete dentures and other prosthetics have been increasing. However, production remains far from the population’s needs, and there is no equity in providing services. The covid-19 pandemic negatively impacted the production of dental prosthetics by SUS.