Oral Health Status of Elderly in an Institution in Turkey

Objectives: To determine the oral health status and treatment needs of elderly residents of a rest home in the city center of Ankara, Turkey. Methods: Among 216 elderly living in a resting house; 193 of them (94 males, 99 females) were interviewed using a standard questionnaire and were clinically examined according to WHO criteria. Twenty-three of the residents were not participated due to various physical and mental disorders. Age, gender, educational and occupational status, oral hygiene practices, dental insurance, access to dental care and systemic diseases were recorded via the questionnaire. In the clinical examination, coronal and root caries, periodontal disease, denture status and related treatment needs were assessed. The screening were carried out by two calibrated dentists. Results: The mean ages of subjects were 75.2 ± 8.3 in males, 79.1 ± 7.9 in females. 32.6% of subjects were dentate. The mean number of teeth present among the dentate persons was 3.7 ± 7.0 (median=0). 88.6% had less than 15 teeth. The mean coronal caries experience was 29.4 ± 5.6 (median=32) DMF and mean root caries was 29.1 ± 6.1 (median=32) R-DF. The major reason for tooth extraction was dental caries. 20.7% of the subjects had at least one untreated coronal caries experience and 18.1% had root caries experience all untreated. The assessment of periodontal status according to CPI revealed that only 4 persons had 9 sextants with healthy periodontal tissues. 62.7% of individuals had total dentures in the maxilla and 53.9% in the mandible. 67.4% of the subjects was edentulous while 54.4% of them lacked denture in both jaws. Conclusion: The results illustrated poor dental health in this group and the demand for the dental health services programs was extremely high for the elderly living in the institution.