Ethics as an important determinant of success of orthopaedic dental care for debilitated and elderly patients.

Ethical aspects of orthopaedic dental care for debilitated and elderly patients--the most complex and the least studied aspects of dentistry--are discussed here. Many articles on dental ethics, as a rule, do not cover the essential ethical aspects of orthopaedic care for the elderly or cover them only partially without reflecting on the problem at large. Understanding of the problem may help to provide more efficient dental care for the elderly population thus improving their quality of life.