Abstract
Background: The objectives of this study were to describe the oral health status in the institutionalized geriatric population in an area of southern Italy and to identify the impact of oral health on the Oral Health Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL). Methods: Data were collected from individuals aged ≥60 years in randomly selected Calabrian long-term care facilities. The dental health status was assessed recording the decayed, missing, or filled dental elements due to the carious lesions (DMFT) index, the presence of visible dental plaque, and the gingival condition. The influence of the dental health status on the self-perceived value of life was assessed using the Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI). Results: Among the 344 elderly individuals included, 18.4% reported frequent tooth-brushing, and only 39.9% reported the need of dental care. The DMFT index was 26.4. Less than a third of the participants had a GOHAI score of ≤50 which is suggestive of highly compromised OHRQoL. The GOHAI score was significantly better for elderly individuals with no self-perceived need of dental care and with a lower DMFT index. Conclusions: The burden of oral conditions among residents in long-term care facilities was considerable, with a high prevalence of missing teeth and dentures. Strategies targeting care providers are needed.
Highlights
In the last decades, life expectancy in developed countries has sharply risen and the proportion of people over 60 years of age within the population is increasing [1]
The health problems arising as a result of the aging process require special attention, considering that as people get older, they suffer from several chronic diseases that could influence, among other things, the ability to maintain oral hygiene; the resulting use of medications may endanger oral health [3,4]
To overcome the difficulty of identifying a sampling frame of all institutionalized elderly individuals in Calabrian long-term care facilities, the whole region was divided into two areas (North and South), and in each area, a random sample of ten long-term care facilities was selected from a publicly available frame of all facilities accredited by the Regional
Summary
Life expectancy in developed countries has sharply risen and the proportion of people over 60 years of age within the population is increasing [1]. The health problems arising as a result of the aging process require special attention, considering that as people get older, they suffer from several chronic diseases that could influence, among other things, the ability to maintain oral hygiene; the resulting use of medications may endanger oral health [3,4] This is of importance since maintenance of oral health and attention to dental care improve the function of the stomatognathic apparatus, interpersonal relationships, and the overall quality of the subject’s life [5]. The influence of the dental health status on the self-perceived value of life was assessed using the Geriatric Oral. The GOHAI score was significantly better for elderly individuals with no self-perceived need of dental care and with a lower DMFT index.
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