*Anna Haładyj, Tomasz Kaczyński
Oral health assessment in patients with Alzheimer’s disease – a pilot study
Ocena stanu zdrowia jamy ustnej pacjentów z chorobą Alzheimera – badanie pilotażowe
Department of Periodontology and Oral Diseases, Medical University of Warsaw
Head of Department: Professor Renata Górska, MD, PhD
Streszczenie
Wstęp. Wyniki najnowszych badań sugerują, że zły stan zdrowia jamy ustnej może mieć wpływ na rozwój choroby Alzheimera oraz wskazują na istniejącą korelację pomiędzy zapalną chorobą przyzębia a chorobą Alzheimera.
Cel pracy. Ocena stanu zdrowia jamy ustnej u pacjentów z chorobą Alzheimera oraz określenie stomatologicznych potrzeb leczniczych tej grupy chorych.
Materiał i metody. Badaniem objęto 35 chorych z chorobą Alzheimera przebywających na oddziale Centrum Alzheimera w Warszawie. Badanie periodontologiczne oraz stomatologiczne przeprowadzono przy łóżkach chorych z wykorzystaniem lampy czołowej, sondy periodontologicznej oraz lusterka stomatologicznego. W badaniu oceniano: liczbę zębów, głębokość kieszonek dziąsłowych, obecność kamienia nazębnego i płytki nazębnej (API, PI), uzupełnia protetyczne, wypełnienia stomatologiczne oraz zmiany na błonach śluzowych.
Wyniki. Wśród badanych tylko 18 osób posiadało szczątkowe uzębienie. U tych pacjentów rozpoznano przewlekłe zapalenie przyzębia oraz stwierdzono potrzebę profesjonalnej opieki periodontologicznej. Liczba osób bezzębnych wynosiła 17, a średnia liczba zębów 5,63. Średnie wartości PWUZ, PI oraz API wynosiły odpowiednio 24,91, 79,0 oraz 82,1%. Patologiczne zmiany na błonie śluzowej zaobserwowano u 34 chorych.
Wnioski. Stan zdrowia przyzębia i całej jamy ustnej u pacjentów z chorobą Alzheimera wymaga szczególnej uwagi ze strony personelu medycznego. Ze względu na zaburzenia poznawcze, utrzymanie właściwej higieny jamy ustnej oraz ruchomych uzupełnień protetycznych może wymagać dodatkowej pomocy. Z tych względów pacjentów z chorobą Alzheimera należy objąć szczególną opieką stomatologiczną oraz zwiększyć świadomość w tym zakresie wśród personelu opiekującego się chorymi.
Summary
Introduction. Recent data have shown a possible correlation between periodontitis and Alzheimer’s disease and suggested that poor oral condition may contribute to the clinical onset and progression of Alzheimer’s disease.
Aim. To evaluate the oral health of patients with Alzheimer’s disease and establish a proper dental and periodontal management strategy in this patient population.
Material and methods. The study included 35 subjects diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and hospitalised in Alzheimer’s Centre in Warsaw. Bedside periodontal and dental examination was performed in all patients using a periodontal probe, a mirror and a headlamp. Number of teeth, pocket depth, the presence of dental plaque, calculus, PI, API, DMFT, lesions of oral mucosa, as well as conservative and prosthodontic restorations were assessed.
Results. Only 18 patients had residual dentition that allowed to evaluate the periodontal status. All these patients had periodontitis and were in need of professional treatment. The number of edentulous patients was 17, and mean number of present teeth was 5.63. Mean values of DMFT, PI and API were 24.91, 79.0 and 82.1% respectively. Oral mucosa lesions were observed in 34 subjects.
Conclusions. Oral and periodontal health status of patients with Alzheimer’s disease should raise a concern of care providers. Due to cognitive impairment, proper oral hygiene and denture care could not be maintained without additional assistance. Thus these patients should be provided with special dental care. Additionally, the awareness of caretakers about the importance of oral hygiene maintenance should be raised.
Introduction
Alzheimer’s disease is a chronic, progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterised by cognitive impairment, psycho-behavioural symptoms and verbal disability (1). It is the most common dementia, accounting for 50% of cases (2). In Poland, the number of patients with dementia is approximately 400,000, including about 250,000 AD patients (3). The incidence of this disease increases with age, from 4% in 65-74 age group to 19% in 85-89 years age group (4). Higher incidence of AD in women, who account for two-thirds of all patients, is also observed (5). Current demographic processes in developed countries result in an increase in the elderly population and are thus associated with a growing population affected by age-related diseases. In 2007 in Poland, the proportion of people aged at least 65 years was 13.5% and it is expected to reach 23.2% in 2035 (6). Demographic prognoses regarding population aged 85 years or more assume a three-fold increase in 2035 (3.1%) compared to 2007 (1.1%) (6). It is estimated that by 2020 there will be a four-fold increase in the number of AD patients in Poland, giving about one million affected people (3).
Due to both, the increasing awareness of patients as well as the increase in the level of dental care, the proportion of elderly edentate individuals is systematically decreasing. This contributes to the growing demand for dental care in longer-living patients, who are increasingly less likely to exclusively use complete dentures. Unfortunately, the manual skills of patients deteriorate with age, especially if accompanied by dementia (7). Demographic data indicate that the number of elderly people will continue to increase significantly throughout the world, resulting in the growth in the incidence of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and other comorbidities, such as diabetes and periodontitis. Oral health affects not only the quality of life in the elderly, but can also impact the overall health. Studies indicate a relationship between chronic periodontitis and multiple systemic diseases, i.e. cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, diabetes, osteoporosis (8), preterm birth and low birth weight (9), pancreatic cancer (10), metabolic syndrome (11), chronic renal failure (12) and rheumatoid arthritis (13). Furthermore, there are reports on the relationship between periodontitis and dementia, including AD (14). Considering the direction of demographic changes in developed countries, special attention should be paid to general health status as well as dental needs in the growing elderly population, with a particular focus on the potential effects of periodontal diseases and caries on general health.
Aim
The aim of the study was a clinical assessment of oral hygiene and health in patients with Alzheimer’s disease as well as an attempt to identify dental needs in this patient population.
Material and methods
The study included 35 randomly selected patients diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and staying under the care of Alzheimer’s Centre in Warsaw. The study group included 12 males and 23 females aged 57 to 91 years (mean age 80.23 years).
Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects or legal guardians of incapacitated persons prior to study.
Clinical evaluation was performed in the rooms of patients using dental mirrors, WHO 632 periodontal probe and a headlamp. Caries assessment was based on the WHO guidelines for epidemiological research (15) and the number of decayed, filled and missing teeth was recorded. Based on these data, DMFT and care index, assessing the efficacy of caries treatment, were used. Oral hygiene was assessed based on the presence of dental plaque on the four surfaces of each tooth (mesial, distal, lingual and vestibular), and thus O’Leary plaque index (PI) and Lange approximal plaque index (API) were obtained (17). For the purpose of periodontal assessment, the presence of bleeding upon probing, mineralised calculus, pockets with a depth of 3.5 up to 5.5 mm and pockets with a depth of more than 6 mm was evaluated. The presence of oral mucosal lesions and removable dentures was also recorded.
Arithmetic mean and standard deviation were calculated in order to characterise the average values of the evaluated continuous items and their variability. The obtained results were analysed and converted into percentage using Excel.
Results
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Piśmiennictwo
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