ABSTRACT
Tooth loss is an important health dilemma. The aim of the present study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of dental status and edentulism in the elderly residing in Iran. An electronic search of the literature was carried out on Farsi and English databases using the following keywords: edentulism, dental caries, elderly, oral and dental health, edentulous, geriatric, caries, dentate, Iran, and prevalence. Articles that met the eligibility criteria according to the STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies In Epidemiology) checklist were selected and entered into the meta-analysis. Data were analyzed using Stata 13.1 software, and the metan and metareg packages for used for the meta-regression and meta-analysis. Of the 172 articles retrieved, 154 were used after eliminating the duplicates, and their full texts were read. Of the 4574 participants evaluated in 13 studies, 2227 (48.7%) were completely edentulous (95% confidence interval [CI]: .49-.49). Of the 4423 participants evaluated in 12 studies, 2286 (51.7%) were dentate (95% CI: .52-.52). The mean number of remaining teeth was 5.73 (95% CI: 5.73-5.73) in six studies conducted on 2782 participants. Approximately 50% of the elderly in Iran are completely edentulous. Efforts should be made to improve dental care instruction, provision of dental care services in the public sector, and dental insurance coverage to promote the dental status of elderly Iranians.
Subject(s)
Dental Caries , Tooth Loss , Aged , Dental Care , Humans , Iran , Oral HealthABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of dental and oral mucosal lesions in institutionalised elderly people in Rasht. BACKGROUND: Oral health in the elderly people is important to tailor the health programmes for this increasing age group within the population. METHODS: A total of 216 elderly people residing in a geriatric nursing home were included in the study. Subjects were interviewed and examined clinically and registered in a data collection form and analysed using spss version 11 program (SPSS Inc, Chicago, Illinois, USA). RESULTS: The prevalence of dental and oral disorders was 44.9% and 86.1% respectively. The most frequent oral disorders were dry mouth (42.1%), fissure tongue (25.9%), atrophic of tongue (25%), sublingual varicosity (22.7%), burning sensation (16.7%) and varix (15.3%). The prevalence of edentulousness was 56% (95%CI: 49-63%). The mean level of retained teeth was 3.22. The odds of an oral mucosal disorder in females were significantly more than in males (OR = 2.79, 95%CI: 1.25-6.23). DISCUSSION: The findings revealed a high prevalence of dental and oral disorders in institutionalised elderly people in Rasht in comparison to similar studies. The mean of retained teeth was also much lower than in other reports. Therefore, the necessity for regular oral examination of these rapidly expanding age groups of people is essential.
