ACTINIC CHEILITIS: EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDY AMONG RURAL WORKERS

Abstract

To identify the epidemiological aspects of AK in rural workers, 60 patients, residents of rural areas, over 18 years of age, who perform or have performed work activities with exposure to solar radiation participated in this research. Aspects such as sex, sun exposure, literacy level (divided into literate and non-literate), use of lip sunscreen, smoking, alcohol consumption and clinical characteristics were evaluated. Sixty individuals were examined between October and December 2021, 45 (75.0%) were male and 15 (25.0%) were female. As for sun exposure, 38 (63.3%) were exposed to the sun for an average of 8 hours a day, and only 17 individuals (28.3%) used lip balm. The remaining 71.6% do not use and have never used lip balm. Regarding smoking and alcohol consumption, 22 (36.7%) used cigarettes daily, and 14 (23.3%) used alcohol frequently. The literacy level of the individuals examined is high, where most individuals (80.0%) have completed elementary school. These data reveal a relationship between the accumulated working time outdoors and the presence of the pathology, highlighting the need to raise awareness of the use of sun protection and awareness campaigns for the Prevention of Oral Cancer.