The splendid advance in medical technology has enlarged life span, stirring up a rapid increase in the elderly population. But the oral health of the elderly is not taken seriously. A tooth loss or oral disease that elderly people experience could be ...
The splendid advance in medical technology has enlarged life span, stirring up a rapid increase in the elderly population. But the oral health of the elderly is not taken seriously. A tooth loss or oral disease that elderly people experience could be said to be attributed to improper oral health care and a lack of preventive treatment rather than aging.
The purpose of this study was to examine the oral health education experiences of senior citizens, their oral health awareness, oral health behavior and needs for oral health education in an effort to pave the way for the development of senior oral health education programs.
The subjects in this study were 205 senior citizens in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province. An one-on-one interview was held from March 15 to April 15, 2010, and the collected data were analyzed with a SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Science for Windows) 15.0 program. Statistical data on frequency and percentage were obtained to figure out the general characteristics of the subjects, and another statistical data on frequency, mean and standard deviation were acquired to find out their oral health awareness, oral health behavior, oral health education experiences and needs for oral hygiene education. Besides, t-test, one-way ANOVA, x2-test and frequency analysis were utilized. The findings of the study were as follows:
The elderly people investigated got a mean of 32.51 out of possible 45 points in oral health awareness, which indicated that they took a relatively correct view of oral health. Specifically, what they were best aware of was that toothbrushing should be done after meals, and what they knew the least was that one should go to a dentist immediately when there's something wrong with his or her mouth. The largest group brushed their teeth twice a day, and the biggest group(65.9%) did that by moving their toothbrush up and down and to both sides. Most of them didn't get a regular dental checkup, and those who ever received oral health education got a more frequent regular dental checkup than the others who didn't. 64.2 percent didn't make use of oral hygiene supplies, who outnumbered the others who did.
The majority(76.6%) never received oral health education. In the case of those who received that education, the greatest group(44.0%) did that at dental clinics, and the biggest group(68.8%) received that education once. Among those with oral health education experiences, the majority (87.5%) ever learned about the right toothbrushing method, and the biggest group(57.1%) found themselves to brush their teeth in the right way.
Out of the senior citizens with oral health education experiences, 52.1 percent wore denture, and 84.0 percent of those elderly people learned how to take care of the denture. 58.0 percent never received education on the use of oral hygiene supplies.
As for the necessity of oral health education, they gave a mean of 3.92 out of possible five points, which showed that they felt the need for that education. 60.0 percent had an intention to receive oral health education if they had a chance, and they gave a mean of 3.92, 3.88 and 3.79, which were high scores, to the necessity of education about the right toothbrushing method, how to take care of denture and the right use of oral hygiene supplies respectively.
The above-mentioned findings suggested that the senior citizens had a good understanding of oral health but didn't take care of their oral health properly. Lots of them never received oral health education, but they had strong needs for oral health education.
Therefore senior oral health education should urgently be provided for elderly people to improve their oral health care habits and prevent oral diseases, and more intensive education is required to promote their oral health.