Skip to main content

Senior Oral Health Care - The Oral/Systemic Link




Senior Oral Health Care—The Oral/Systemic Link
This article was submitted by Mary Jensen RDH, MS

Can you imagine not being able to brush your own teeth? Perhaps it is due to arthritis, poor vision, or dementia. Your inability to perform routine and effective oral hygiene care leads to dental decay and likely periodontal (gum) disease. It can also contribute to an increased risk of heart disease, stroke,
and aspiration pneumonia. Controlling your diabetes will be much more difficult.

 Oral hygiene care is more than routine grooming like brushing one’s hair, or shaving—it is infection control! Inflammation of the gums will negatively effect overall health. The mouth is connected to the body! The blood that is in the infected gum tissue is the same blood that is traveling to the
heart. Many seniors have had the benefit of preventative dental care. They have their natural teeth! Who will take the responsibility for caring for them when they can no longer care for themselves? This responsibility falls on the family or caregiver. Basic steps can be taken to assist and encourage oral hygiene care.

 AT HOME--

 Be prepared. Set up the toothbrush with a thin layer of toothpaste in the bathroom. Have a cup of water ready to rinse. (if rinsing is not possible, use a thin layer infant toothpaste gel—it is safe to swallow) Have the individual stand (if possible) or sit at the sink. Hand the toothbrush to the individual and ask them to brush. If this is not possible, place the toothbrush in their dominant
hand and have your hand over theirs and gently brush. Ask your dental professional (dentist or dental hygienist) what might work best for cleaning between the teeth.

 IN MEMORY CARE/ ASSISTED LIVING--

 Ask who is providing oral hygiene care (brushing and between the teeth oral hygiene care) and how often. Once a day? Twice a day? What training did the caregiver receive? How is your loved one responding to this oral care? Are they cooperative? What steps are being taken to make it successful?
One of the main reason seniors are hospitalized is aspiration pneumonia (AP.) AP is the inflammation of the lungs caused by breathing in foreign material. Where is that material coming from to “set up shop” in the lungs? Many times, the mouth! Hospitalization and antibiotics may be needed to prevent
respiratory failure. One’s overall health depends on quality oral health!

 This article was submitted by Mary Jensen RDH, MS

 Mary is a Registered Dental Hygienist and the Lead Oral Care Specialist with the HyLife Oral Health Alliance and provides weekly oral hygiene care to dependent seniors. 

 She can be reached at 630.877.3151 or by email at  maryjensenrdh@gmail.com
Mary Jensen, RDH, MS

Mary has practiced dental hygiene for over 35 years including three years in Switzerland.  She is the Lead Oral Care Specialist with the HyLife Oral Health Alliance-a network of dental hygienists that provide weekly oral hygiene care to dependent seniors. She regularly gives presentations on oral health to assisted living/memory care nursing staff, and senior groups.  Along with her passion for the overall health of seniors, is her passion for mission trips. As the organizations lead dental hygienist,  Mary has completed over a dozen trips with Alliance for Smiles--providing dental hygiene care on four continents and six countries.

HyLife Oral Health Alliance  www.hylifeoha.com

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Holidays and Dementia: Part 2

There was too much to share about dementia & holiday planning in the last post, so I wanted to share more in a follow-up. Here we go, let's be real here... Many of us have a Norman Rockwell scene in our heads when we plan for the holidays.  Am I right?  In reality, our family scenes look more like a combination of  Everybody loves Raymond, Rosanne, and the Sopranos.  The holidays can be overstimulating and emotional for many of us. When caring for someone who is living with dementia, it can be tempting to overdue All. The. Things. Especially our expectations. (Warning: Real Talk!) As we watch a loved one decline with dementia, it's natural to wonder if this could *gulp* be their last holiday. Consequently, we have the dangerous combination of heightened expectations mixed with sadness that dementia is slowly taking away our loved one.  Caregiver grief rises and is often masked by the desire to make the most of the day, the holiday. ...
2 comments
Read more

Sexuality in Dementia

I'm going to be real here... The reality of the situation is that I have avoided blogging about this topic for months because it such a difficult topic. It's not difficult because I find the topic uncomfortable. I am not a prude, per se. We are adults. And by now, you all know I'm all about tacking tough topics of dementia care. The reason I've avoided writing about the topic is because there is absolutely no way that I can wrap this topic up in 750 words with a pretty little bow on top. No way, it's much too complex for that.  To start, "Sexuality in Dementia" encompasses such a wide variety of issues...foul/sexual language, suggestive comments, touching self/others, exposing self/others, masturbation, requesting sexual acts, and extra-marital relations when the person living with dementia no longer recalls they have a living spouse/partner and have found a new companion... to name a few.  See what I mean? That's quite a variety of situa...
Post a Comment
Read more

Thanksgiving 2019

Thanksgiving is THIS week and many of us are in planning/preparation mode. If someone living with dementia will be a part of your holiday gathering, I want you to say this phrase aloud and use it to guide your interactions with that loved one...  "Less is best" Did you say it out loud? Are you thinking this doesn't apply to your situation?  Seriously, I have seen this every year for the 17 years I've worked in dementia care.  I say this with deep love and respect, knowing that your intentions are good... When planning holiday time with a loved one living with dementia, you must think LESS. Less people around. Less time/duration of visits. Less food options. Less extravagant gifts. Less decorations. Less travel. Less changes to the person’s normal routine.   Less snippy over-stressed family members around. (sorry, were those your toes I just stepped on, friend?) Less stimulation. Are you catching my drift here? Less is more...
Post a Comment
Read more