Self‐Assessed General Health and Dental Status Among the Elderly in a Swedish County

Abstract

A random sample of non‐institutionalized elderly people in Örebro County, Sweden, has been examined. The present paper reports on the general health conditions obtained from interviews in this population and on the relation between general health and dental status. Eighty‐one percent of the clinically examined subjects considered that they were healthy or fairly healthy. A higher percentage of women as compared to men regarded themselves to be moderately or very ill. Women also used more drugs than men did. Only 6% did not feel strong enough for extensive dental treatment. Physically handicapped people used dental services less than the rest of the population did. Otherwise, general health seemed to have limited influence on the use of dental services. Subjects with better dental status reported less frequent illness, chronic diseases, and medication as compared to subjects with poorer dental status. The self‐assessed general health, also in the presence of age, sex, and residence variables, showed significant correlation with the dental status but not if socio‐economic variables were also included in a regression model.

Oral Disease and Physical Disability in Community‐Dwelling Older Persons

“…Older persons with physical disability were at significantly increased risk of current decay and edentulism but at no increased risk of periodontal disease compared with their physically able counterparts. This finding is consistent with previous research that has identified an association of chronic health conditions with oral disease in older persons 16,17 …”

“…We further determined that mobility disability was a strong predictor of recency of last dental visit; that is, the more disabled were less likely to have seen a dentist recently. The relationship between mobility disability and dental utilization, which has been reported by others, 17–19 lends further support to the interpretation that mobility disability affects an older person's risk of edentulism by restricting access to necessary dental care.…”

Predicting Concerns for the Mouth among Institutionalized Elders

“…There is general agreement that elderly people, if they have natural teeth and if they are aware of a dental problem, will seek and use dental services in a manner similar to younger adults (9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)(19). It is not so clear, however, how other factors influence this behavior.…”

Recent Clinical Research in Geriatric Dentistry1

“…A mixed picture emerges. A Swedish study [Palmqvist et al, 1986] finds self-assessed general health significantly correlated with dental status. On the other hand, Mac-Entee et al [1985] found no relationship between systemic health and oral disorders in the elderly in a Canadian nursing home, but they go on to say that ".…”

“…Various authors have emphasized the effects on food choice that changes in masticatory efficiency produce. It will also be recalled that full denture prostheses also produce mucosal changes which in turn affect taste and food choice and selection [see Papas et al, 1988].…”