STUDY PROFILE: ORAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT AMONG “ESSE-RF3” PARTICIPANTS IN THE ARKHANGELSK REGION

Abstract

Rationale and aims: Population of the Russian North has high prevalence of both cardiovascular and dental diseases. The Arkhangelsk region was included in the third phase of the multicenter study Epidemiology of cardiovascular diseases in Russian regions (ESSE-RF3). The third ESSE-RF study aims at studying the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases, their biological and behavioral risk factors, and associations with regional economic, climatic, and geographical characteristics. The Arkhangelsk part of the study is unique because it included an assessment of oral health of the ESSE-RF3 study participants, and the oral health study protocol is presented in this paper. Methods: A population-based study was performed from 24 February through 30 June 2021 at the outpatient facility of the Northern State Medical University in Arkhangelsk. A representative sample of 1816 permanent residents of the Arkhangelsk region aged 35-74 years participated in the ESSE-RF3 study. Most of them (84.9%-87.5%) agreed to take part in the oral part of the study. The latter included a questionnaire; collection of saliva and gum fluid; assessment of dental and periodontal health status using a WHO-2013 methodology, oral hygiene, and dental aesthetic index; an orthodontic assessment with periotestometry and a photo protocol. In addition, an in-depth orthodontic study was performed in a sub-sample of the participants aged 35-51 years (N=236) using teleroentgenography, cone-beam computed tomography, and biometrics of plaster models. Expected results and conclusions: The study will assess the prevalence of a wide range of states and conditions related to oral health in a representative sample of the adult population of the Arkhangelsk region in the target age-group using validated international instruments to ensure comparability and reproducibility of the findings. More importantly, the study will assess the associations between various aspects of oral health and cardiovascular diseases, their risk factors as well as regional and behavioral characteristics studied by the main ESSE-RF3 study protocol.