Mechanical aids in the prevention of dental diseases in the elderly.

Dental practitioners, who are often unaccustomed to treating geriatric patients, should be taught to accept that old people do not necessarily respond to optimal dental treatment as younger patients do. There is an evident need for continuing education in this respect. The many plaque removing mechanical aids available, such as toothbrushes, toothpicks, and dental flosses, have not been studied in the elderly. Since manual dexterity decreases with increasing age, the use of electric tooth cleaning devices and other aids for improving oral hygiene should be encouraged among the elderly. This is particularly so in patients with physical or mental handicaps. Future studies should investigate the benefits of preventive dental procedures in the elderly and to survey their knowledge, attitudes and behaviour related to oral health. Maintaining proper oral hygiene among the institutionalised elderly has been neglected in many cases. Nurses and other staff in institutions need more information about the role of optimal oral health in the patient's general health and well-being. Staff also need to know more specifically how to help the patients in their daily oral hygiene and how to take care of the patient's dentures. The recently discovered association of poor oral health with life-threatening vascular diseases and other medical catastrophes further emphasizes the importance of maintaining good oral hygiene. Diseases of the mouth and the teeth must be diagnosed and treated in the elderly, who are just as entitled to receive individually designed preventive dental care as are the younger generations.