Donnelly Leeann R, Clarke Laura Hurd, Phinney Alison, MacEntee Michael I
Faculty of Dentistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Gerodontology. 2016 Dec;33(4):480-489. doi: 10.1111/ger.12187. Epub 2015 Feb 9.
The objective of this study was to explore how social interactions and body image are influenced by perceived oral health among older people who live in long-term care facilities.
Social interactions among frail elders in long-term care (LTC) facilities are limited, but to what extent body image and oral health influence their social relations is poorly understood. A positive body image and the perception of adequate oral health are linked to increased social contacts, as well as improved health and well-being irrespective of age. However, as frailty increases, it is unclear whether appearance and oral health priorities remain stable.
Open-ended interviews were conducted with a purposefully selected group of cognitively intact, older men and women who exhibited varying degrees of frailty, social engagement and oral health conditions and lived in one of seven long-term care facilities. The interviews were analysed using a constant comparative technique, and a second interview with participants checked the trustworthiness of the analysis.
Three major categories were expressed by the participants: (1) My mouth is fine; (2) It depends; and (3) Not that important. Within each category, there were several contributing and influencing factors.
Social interactions among residents in LTC may be negatively impacted by poor oral health, but only if other personal and social issues are less bothersome than conditions with the mouth.
本研究的目的是探讨居住在长期护理机构中的老年人，其社交互动和身体形象如何受到感知口腔健康的影响。
长期护理（LTC）机构中体弱老年人的社交互动有限，但身体形象和口腔健康在多大程度上影响他们的社会关系，目前尚不清楚。积极的身体形象和对口腔健康状况良好的认知与社交接触增加以及健康和幸福感的改善相关，与年龄无关。然而，随着身体虚弱程度的增加，外表和口腔健康的优先性是否保持稳定尚不清楚。
对一组经过有目的挑选的认知健全的老年男性和女性进行了开放式访谈，他们表现出不同程度的身体虚弱、社交参与度和口腔健康状况，居住在七所长期护理机构中的一所。访谈采用持续比较技术进行分析，对参与者进行的第二次访谈检验了分析的可信度。
参与者表达了三大类：（1）我的口腔没问题；（2）视情况而定；（3）没那么重要。在每个类别中，都有几个促成和影响因素。
长期护理机构居民之间的社交互动可能会受到口腔健康不佳的负面影响，但前提是其他个人和社会问题没有口腔状况那么麻烦。
