Elderly dental patients typically are challenging to treat due to their poor cognitive skills and manual dexterity. Clinicians need treatment-planning strategies specific to older patients, and should also be proactive in the oral healthcare of those who become residents of long-term care facilities.
What happened to Mrs. Jones? Clinicians have all had the experience of wondering what has become of an elderly patient who has been in the practice for 25 years or so. Because clinicians are frequently so busy running their practices, there often is no time to follow-up with these complex patients who no longer make their recall appointments because of cognitive decline, transportation issues, and other problems that typically accompany older age.
Dentists also often find it frustrating to treat elderly patients. These patients may develop poor oral hygiene secondary to declines in manual dexterity and cognition and/or develop a dry mouth and xerostomia because of their medication. No one wants to see their dentistry fail, but many of these patients are unable to maintain their oral health well enough to prevent decay.
The Coalition for Oral Health for the Aging (www.micoha.org) surveyed dentists in the state of Michigan who provide care for the elderly and found that they were willing to treat elderly patients who were able to come to the office and pay for services. But what about patients who can no longer make it to the dentist office? What should clinicians be doing now to prepare patients for their future decline in oral care?
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