Medication and perception of dry mouth in a population of institutionalised elderly people.

AIM

(1) To estimate the prevalence of use of different medication categories; (2) to estimate the prevalence of xerostomia (dry mouth); and (3) to estimate the effects of xerostomic medication upon perceived dry mouth among institutionalised elderly people.

SUBJECTS

A two-stage stratified random sample of three hundred and fifty-nine people aged 65 to 102 living in rest homes and geriatric hospitals in the Manawatu and Horowhenua districts.

METHOD

Subjects were interviewed and dentally examined at their place of residence. Medication was noted from institutional records, and subjects' experiences of xerostomia were explored using the question "how often does your mouth feel dry?"

RESULTS

The sample was found to be highly medicated, with a mean 3.6 different drugs per individual, and only 10% not taking any medication. Psychotherapeutics (42.3%), analgesics (32.9%), diuretics (31.2%) and laxatives (23.4%) were the most common drug categories. Of the 284 subjects who were able to answer, only those who were taking anticholinergic medication reported a higher prevalence of xerostomia.

CONCLUSIONS

Institution-dwelling elderly people are a highly-medicated group. There is an increased risk of unwanted oral side-effects with certain drugs, and it is recommended that this is borne in mind when prescribing for elderly patients.