Issue: Volume 14, Issue 3
Release Date: 31 Aug 2021

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Oral Healthcare in the Older Population: An Increasing Challenge to the UK Dental Profession

Hannah Barrow, BDS, MFDS RCSEd Dental Core Trainee, Pinderfields General Hospital, Aberford Road, Wakefield and Martin Ashley, BDS (hons) FDSRCS (Eng) FDS (Rest Dent) RCS MPhil, Consultant and Honorary Professor in Restorative Dentistry and Oral Health, University Dental Hospital of Manchester, UK. email: hannah.barrow2@nhs.net

The percentage of the UK population that is over 65 years old is growing and this brings a number of complex challenges for the dental profession. Patients are struggling to attend for appointments and those who do are attending with increasing physical and mental morbidities and greater care needs, with dementia, in particular, bringing significant difficulties and complications during dental management. This article describes the oral manifestations of dementia and provides clinical advice to practitioners in supporting these patients, and discusses communication, diagnosis, treatment planning, consent, the dental practice environment and home care advice.

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