Maintaining oral hygiene and dental health is a struggle for coherent patients, but imagine if you also started to lose your memory. 13.9% of Americans are plagued by dementia in the United States of America. Dementia is considered a group of symptoms caused by various ailments that have a substantial affect on the brain, such that it is one of the primary causes of death in elderly people. The prevalence of dementia seems to increase with age and it is estimated that 13% of Americans over 65 have Alzheimer’s disease, which is the most common form of dementia. Furthermore, almost 50% of people over the age of 85 have Alzheimer’s disease.
Dementia can make it difficult for the Dentist to communicate with the patient since they could have
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The caries risk is also higher for patients who live in a community with dementia. Patients who have dementia and are living by themselves require much more attention , if they are living by themselves they don’t remember to perform oral hygiene. Interesting enough nursing home residents with mild to severe dementia were seen to have higher calculus and plaque scores than people with mild or no …show more content…
This study also showed that oral disease was high in both newly admitted and existing nursing home residents. The authors of the above study with their limited findings concluded that dental health had deteriorated in the older adults with dementia even before they entered the assisted living facility. Even though much research has been done to describe oral disease patterns in older dementia patients, very few studies compare and contrast oral health in demented elders living in different environments. A study which compared oral health in older adults with dementia living at home and those living in institutions, found no significant difference between the two groups in the number of decayed, missing filled teeth (DMFT), or decayed coronal or root surfaces. Transitioning from living at home to an assisted living facility and then a nursing home is a big change for dementia patients, both in the surrounding environment but also in the level of care required. During this change, older adults slowly lose their ability to perform activities of daily living (ADL’s). It is important that we as dentists, and as part of the health care team, ensure that this issue is discussed and addressed to better assist patients
Informal supports, such as aid for housekeeping and running errands, are crucial to maintaining the lifestyle of individuals with Alzheimer’s in the community; however, the disease’s erosion of physical, cognitive, and communicative abilities often creates tremendous strain for family caregivers. Individuals and family caregivers dealing with Alzheimer’s often experience increasing social isolation as the disease’s progression undermines both mobility and the capacity for meaningful and appropriate engagement with the community (Banerjee et al., 2003). A number of studies have documented the physical and mental health costs borne by unsupported caregivers, and the link between caregiver stress and the institutionalization of their ill family members (Andren & Elmstahl, 2005; Banerjee et al., 2003). Taken together, the stress and isolation of dealing with Alzheimer’s disease undermine the health and quality of life of everyone involved, eventually precipitating institutionalization.
Dementia is common among a large population of elderly people. The disease affects not only the individual diagnosed, but also the caregivers that work towards making their life comfortable in the end. Understanding and learning about the disease is crucial in helping those that experience or live with someone who has dementia. The services and support that are currently in affect for elderly people with dementia and the caregivers is poor, and ineffective because of the lack of research and information on the topic.
Staff should be able to identify the most common signs and symptoms of dementia that can
Dementia is the loss of a person’s mental skills from their daily routines. The symptoms of dementia could easily be over looked, they include forgetting things, daily routines are hard to complete, misplacing things, depression, aggravation and aggression, emotion are high, even feeling like someone is a threat to their life (Web MD,2012). Caring for someone with dementia can be difficult if with resources like healthcare, living facilities, nursing homes and medicine is involved, but sometimes healthcare and facilities do not provide the proper care. This disease is very common in the elderly community past the age of sixty-five. Finding out that a loved
Although Alzheimer’s disease appears to be the most common cause of dementia, “more than 50 conditions are associated with dementia, including degenerative ...
Imagine having to spend half your fortune on correcting your teeth.”Tooth decay was a perennial national problem that meant a mouthful of silver for patients, and for dentists a pocketful of gold.” (Wallis, 17) If patients don’t take care of their teeth, many issues can start to appear later in their life. Some patients are not knowledgeable of the correct procedures toward keeping a healthy smile. In order to keep a healthy smile patients must be better informed about the knowledge to achieve that success and also maintain.
Imagine waking up and not knowing what is going on in the world. That is how people who suffer from dementia live every day of their lives. They forget their basic cognitive skills and functions. According to Joseph Quinn (2013), those diagnosed with dementia have trouble with attentiveness, language, and memory recall. (Quinn, 2013). For example, just speaking to a family member is hard for dementia patients, because they forget how to form
Alzheimer’s disease is a fatal neurodegenerative disease that becomes more prevalent with age. Discovered by German psychologist Alois Alzheimer in 1906, it is associated with a memory loss, speech impediment, and dementia. In Canada alone, 500,000 people suffer from this terrible disease and the number of cases is predicted to double by 2031[7]. Worldwide, nearly 44 million people are believed to be experiencing Alzheimer’s disease and every 68 seconds, someone in the United States of America develops Alzheimer’s [8]. Alzheimer’s disease is also the sixth leading cause of death in North America. Furthermore, it is the only leading cause of death that is still increasing in prevalence. Not only fatal, Alzheimer’s is also severely crippling for all the friends and family that are affected by the patient. The memory loss and dementia that is directly linked to Alzheimer’s disease can cause the patient to forget the identity of their loved ones. For the people that have known the patient for many years, this can be very devastating. The long and terrible journey from an able-bodied and functioning member of society to a barely self-sufficient person is not a pleasant one. Undoubtedly, Alzheimer’s disease needs to be cured not only for those suffering from the affliction, but for their loved ones who have to endure the fateful journey as well.
Over time as individuals age and are faced with access to care issues they may begin to neglect their oral health. As time passes between dental hygiene cleanings or dentist visits the presence of oral disease may begin to increase.
It is inevitable that eventually each of us will grow old and begin to face more and more health problems as our age rises. Elderly people are challenged by many illnesses and diseases that unfortunately, are incurable. One disease that becomes more common as people age is Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s a common cause and a form of dementia and can severely damage a patient’s cognitive functions and can ultimately cause death. Living with Alzheimer’s disease can be saddening for both the sufferer and the family. Family and friends will find it very hard to cope when a loved one begins slipping away and losing memory of who they are.
Dementia is a disease effecting nearly thirty-six million people worldwide (Whiteman, 2014). Even with so many elderly suffering from the disease, there are many people who don’t know what dementia truly is. People often jump too quickly to the conclusion that dementia is a disease that only effects the memory. They may believe that dementia is inevitable and cannot be cured in any case. They may also believe that dementia is something the majority of elderly will experience when they get older.
Finally, communication, an important Activity of Daily Living (ADL) is explored and patient/carer advice is presented so as to maintain good health conditions in the patient. Analysis of Dementia According to Miller, 2009, dementia is the most accurate expression which illustrates the development of cognitive impairment. It exemplifies the diverse brain anarchies which ultimately lead to severe brain dysfunction (Alzheimer Australia, 2011). Dementia is the leading cause of disability in older adults in Australia, accounting for 17 percent of the cases (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2004). Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Vascular Dementia (VD), Frontotemporal Dementia (FD) and Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB) are the well-known forms of this disease.
Caring for dementia involves a lot of patience and understanding. It should be dealt with audacity and flawlessness to ensure the vulnerable adults’ well-being. Aiding at home or care home required carers to be at their best, physically and emotionally. The responsibility can be distressing but it is rewarding as well since helping dementia adults in their day to day activities is a significant matter for them. However, carers need a pause as over duty can result to substandard nursing. The big question is: who take care for the carers of people with dementia?
Maintaining oral health is extremely important not only for your mouth, but for your overall health (Wallace, Taylor, Wallace & Cockrell, 2010). Poor oral health impacts a person’s quality of life and general health, It causes pain which could result in poor nutrition (Griffin, Jones, Brunson, Griffin & Bailey, 2012). The residents at Menarock aged care have a private dentist from Alpha dental that visits the facility when prompted, although some resident’s families take them to their own family dental professional.
It was a pleasant day at the Dementia unit and I was assigned to care for a lady whom we can call Miss K. She is a lovely, warm and nice lady who was recently admitted to the Dementia unit two weeks ago. I went to her room to meet her, I introduced myself, greeted her and gave her a hand shake for me to establish rapport. She was very cooperative, participative and independent with her cares. From my observation, I noticed that she is very organised and very particular when it comes to cleanliness. She also wakes up early in the morning and makes sure that all of the things that she needs for morning care are neatly arrange in the bathroom. When having a shower, she cleans her body very well. She also brushes her teeth and cleans her dentures very well. She always likes to wear red coloured clothes and red floral nighties. Before leaving her room, she makes sure that her glasses are clean before wearing it, her used clothes are neatly kept in the empty drawer and she wants to have a handkerchief in her pocket. I also noticed that there is always a glass