Orofacial Manifestations in Patients Diagnosed With Malaria in the Western Brazilian Amazon: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Abstract

Objective: Considering the little evidence about the action of the dentist in the management of patients diagnosed with malaria, this study aimed to analyze the main orofacial changes that affect these patients.

Materials and methods: This is a cross-sectional study where 38 patients diagnosed with malaria are included. An extraoral physical examination was carried out using the diagnostic criteria for temporomandibular disorders instrument. Signs of changes in the oral cavity were detected through intraoral physical examination.

Results: The xerostomia was measured according to the xerostomia inventory scale score (XISS). In this study participated 33 men (87%) and 5 women (13%), with a notable diagnosis of Plasmodium vivax (n = 26). When assessed, the incidence of orofacial changes in the sample studied stands out as myalgia in the chewing muscles (92.1%) and arthralgia in the temporomandibular joint (65.7%). In this study, the results show that there is an association between types of malaria and dysgeusia (p = 0.01).

Conclusion: Given the data obtained, it appears that the patients most affected by the infection are men, and the most commonly found changes are color changes in the oral mucosa, petechiae, xerostomia, arthralgia, myalgia in the chewing muscles, and dysgeusia, even without prior use of antimalarial medication.