Oral cavity health in Elderly - Research Paper Example

Oral cavity health of the Elderly Although a lot of thoughtfulness is given to the importance of oral heath in the society, extremely little attention is given to the elderly. Where the elderly are concern, it is their physical body well-being that is mostly focused on, neglecting their oral cavity health and hoe it impacts on the overall body heath of an individual. This research paper will focus on the importance of oral heath as a component of body heath and in study the impact of oral health among the elderly. The study will explain what constitutes of oral health and analyze the diseases that arise due to lack of proper oral cavity health, and then evaluate the prevention measures to ensure sound mental health. The study concludes with the curative measures and the importance of oral health in the elderly. Key words: Oral, oral cavity, oral hygiene, nutrition, geriatric. Oral health is directly related to many aspects of a person’s general body heath and comfort. Oral refers to the mouth formation including the teeth, tongue and tissues of the mouth. Oral cavity, on the other hand, refers to cheeks and the palates while oral hygiene is the prevention of oral infections through cleanliness procedures such as flossing and brushing teeth. Therefore, the oral cavity encompasses the mouth opening through which food is consumed, and vocalization is done. Oral health is an essential part of an elderly person’s overall health though it is mainly ignored. As a main entry point for food and fluids in the body, oral health is vital in ensuring the overall body health. The main focus of this paper is to study the nature of oral heath among the elderly and evaluate the challenges faced by the elderly in improving their oral health. The paper will also evaluate and discuss the impacts of oral heath on the lives of the elderly and analyze the causes of poor oral health with their solutions. Oral health has been neglected over the years as an essential and a key part of an elderly person’s overall body health and fitness. According to Vargas, Kramarow and Yellowitz (2001), a person is not healthy without a fit, sound and excellent oral health. Oral infections, discomforts and diseases impact on a person’s general heath directly as pain in the oral cavity can be devastating. This leads to the whole body suffering and in most instances eating is compromised as chewing and swallowing become tasking and painful events. Most bacterial infections enter the body through the oral cavity unlike any other part of the body; hence, making it a highly sensitive part in the maintenance of the general body heath. Also, poor oral health has also been attributed to other complications such as loss of self-esteem and self-pity due to the loss of teeth, or inappropriate mouth odors. Although problems and infections associated with oral heath have rarely been fatal, cancers in the oral cavity have led to almost nine thousand deaths in America each year with almost sixty percent of them being among elderly citizens between sixty and seventy years old. As stated by Vargas, Kramarow and Yellowitz (2001), oral health is directly related to many aspects of an elderly person’s body heath and comfort. Diseases such diabetes and systemic infections have been proven to have a link to sound oral health. Other aspects of life like self-esteem and the ability to communicate orally are also affected by the oral health of an individual. While oral health is relevant to body fitness, a poor oral health is associated to teeth losses, mouth odors, gum infections, cavities and oral cancers. Statistics show that more than 50% of old people above sixty five years have dental cavities, whereas more than seventy five percent have experienced loss of teeth. Infections associated with oral heath especially among the elderly can deprive them the peace experienced from lack of pain and suffering; therefore, hindering their capacity to socialize and enjoy old age. It has been observed that the elderly neglect their oral heath in trying to concentrate on other health problems they consider quite fundamental (Chalmers & Pearson, 2005). There are various forms of oral sicknesses or infections among the elderly. One of the most common symptoms of ailing oral health is Pain in the oral cavity. Study shows that discomfort, swelling and pain in the mouth are often the most common oral infections. Pain can be caused by bleeding gums or tooth cavities that touch the nerves. It is a common trend for people to take pain killers to dissipate the pain, but it is necessary for the tissues and teeth to be checked for other infections by a specialist dentist. Almost ten percent of people above the age of sixty five report instances of oral pain. This is only in severe cases where the patient had no alternative but to seek medical care due to acute and prolonged pain. Difficulty in eating and swallowing has also been a concern among the elderly and a symptom of ailing oral health. Difficulties in eating are as a result of lack of teeth and other gum infections that make it difficult for the elderly to chew. Swallowing can be hindered by swollen glands, which lead to pain when swallowing. As a result, the elder population has shown a tendency to switch their food to suit what their mouths can handle, and not necessarily what the body requires (Chalmers & Pearson, 2005). The difficulties in eating lead to poor eating habits and often unbalanced diets. The unbalanced diet serves as a catalyst to other nutritional diseases such as kwashiorkor and malnutrition. These nutritional complications arise as the elderly suffering from oral infections especially swallowing neglect hard foods some extremely rich in these nutrients. There are other diseases also that are as a result, and an indication of poor oral health. One such disease is the Dental caries. This disease eats into the cavities resulting in acute pain and eventual loss of teeth. In elderly people, it poses a serious challenge and a physiological problem. In the years 1988 up to and including 1994, almost thirty percent of people aged sixty five and over were suffering from untreated dental cavities. The cavities once untreated lead to tooth decay, oral pains and teeth loss but in past few years, there has been a continuing reduction in the prevalence of dental caries among the elderly. This can be attributed to increased awareness campaigns in the society. With dental cavities, measures such as filling and root canals can be performed to control them. In their later stages, oral cavities are extremely painful and are a leading cause of discomfort among the elderly. Another disease associated with poor oral health is the periodontal disease. This is a disease that infects the gum leading to wounds in the mouth. Gum infections lead to poor oral odors and pain and culminate in loss of teeth. Bleeding gums are not uncommon though especially when a person is brushing their teeth and can be caused by tooth brush pricks. This; however, is not to say that bleeding gums are natural, because if continuous, they are a sign of weak gums and mouth linings. Research shows that the prevalence of these diseases often increases with age. The prevalence rate among adults between twenty five and thirty years is almost six percent, whereas among elderly people above sixty five years, it rises to forty two percent in 2011. As such studies have been done to evaluate the causes of this shift in prevalence. The increase in the prevalence of gum diseases among the elderly cannot; however, be attributed to poor oral heath alone, but other factors such as terminal diseases also affect the health of the elderly. Diabetes has especially been observed to affect the oral health of patients and is a main cause of death among the old people above sixty five years. Another disease associated with poor oral health is the Oral cancer. Oral cancer affects the lips, mouth and pharynx. The cancer causes intensely painful wounds that spread over time through the entire oral cavity. Once infected, oral cancer can only be controlled but never cured. This disease is a key area of concern in oral health of people above sixty five years. This is so because the elderly are seven times more susceptible to contact the cancer than any other age group below that age. The prevalence of oral cancer has been growing over the years. For instance, about five thousand elderly Americans died from oral cancer in 2000 compared to nine thousand deaths in 2011. Research shows that more adults die from oral cancer than even skin cancer. The causes of poor oral heath can be broadly be categorized into two. The first is nutrition habits and the second is hygiene. Nutrition, i.e. what one consumes plays a significant role in monitoring the levels of oral health, though other issues of hygiene and dental care also influence oral health. The elderly population is usually susceptible to oral complications, and a principal cause has been contributed to poor nutrition. Poor eating habits result in gum infections and teeth cavities and in extreme instances a cancerous infection may arise. With elderly people, the choice of food is fundamental in their eating habits, and as most lack strong teeth or even any teeth at all, they tend to avoid hard foods. As such, they eat little and selected fruits resulting in deficiency of vital vitamins in the body, some vital for fighting oral and general body infections. As a result, majority of elderly people prefer quite light food and most often liquid meals that are easy to consume. This creates a high chance for deficiency of vital nutrients in their meals especially calories. Also, the active consumption of artificially produced drinks such a juice and soda as substitutes to the hard fruits, it increases the intake of sugars exponentially, which more often than not lead to teeth cavities. The elderly population often prefers foods suitable for their consumption without minding the nutritional value often tending to intake soups that are salted. This increases the prevalence of high blood pressure among the elderly people. As old age comes with a precedence loss of teeth, the elderly are unable to masticate their foods properly hence are excreted from the body without absorption. These foods that pass unabsorbed may contain vital nutrients necessary for a sound body health. According to Rosenthal (2011), often than not, it is the lack of vital nutrients in the diet of the elderly that leads to oral infections and problems. The next most influential cause of poor oral health is hygiene. Hygiene includes all the measures that someone puts in order to prevent dental infections. Top among them is cleanliness which can be achieved through brushing of teeth and flossing. As the elderly are sometimes frail and weak to brush their own teeth, it is the responsibility of the people taking care of the elderly to maintain their hygiene. With regular brushing of teeth, many oral infections can be avoided. Also, some oral infections can be transmitted from one person to another hence infected people should be synthesized on seeking treatment before infecting others. As a nutritional and hygiene have been discussed above as preventive measures for oral health, dental care is a curative measure. Dentists treat these infections, and whether or not the elderly can access their services is vital for their oral health. Dental care among the elderly has considerably been impacted by the frequency in which they visit dental clinics. The care accorded to the elderly in America is directly related to whether they are insured or not. With a regular dental visit teeth can be checked and cleaned hence taking prevention measures towards oral health. It is also beneficial for the elderly to attend dental clinic checkups and where they are infected they should be treated in time (Taylor, Loesche and Terpenning, 2000). In conclusion, oral health is an essential part of the whole being health of an individual. Although the use of dental care has improved among the elderly over the past twenty years or so, infections from oral-related complications have been on the rise. Improved access to proper care and creation of mass awareness is fundamental in controlling the prevalence of oral infections. The elderly if treated well for oral infections will in turn avoid other complications and age peacefully. The government should set up strategies to ensure accessibility to dental care for all citizens above the age of sixty five years and actively synthesize people on the importance of proper oral heath, especially among the elderly. References Chalmers, J. M., & Pearson, A. (2005). A systemic review of oral health assessment by nurses and carers for residents with dementia in residential care facilities.  Special Care Dentistry, 25(5), 227–233. Frenkel, H., Harvey, I., & Newcombe, R. G. (2001). Improving oral health in institutionalized elderly people by educating caregivers: A randomized controlled trial. Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology, 29, 289–297. Lamster, I. B., & Northridge, M. E. (2008). Improving Oral Health for the Elderly: An Interdisciplinary Approach. London: Springer. Rosenthal, R. A. (2011). Principles and Practice of Geriatric Surgery. London: Springer. Taylor, G. W., Loesche, W. J., & Terpenning, M. S. (2000). Impact of oral diseases on systemic health in the elderly: Diabetes mellitus and aspiration pneumonia. Journal of Public Health Dentistry, 60(4), 313–320. Vargas, C. M., Kramarow, E. A., & Yellowitz, J. A. (2001). The Oral Health of Older Americans. Retrieved on May 17, 2012, from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/ahcd/agingtrends/03oral.pdf Read More