Abstract
Recently, a lot of clinical evidence was reported that there is a close relationship between dental treatment and general health conditions. This study was designed to evaluate the effect of dental treatment (providing removable dentures) on the activity of daily living for 32 bedridden elderly persons by means of removable dentures.
The rate of ‘remarkable improvement’ among the 32 patients was 21.9%, ‘improvement’ 9.4% and ‘no efficacy’ 68.9%. However, as far as the 18 patients that accepted to use dentures, the rate of ‘remarkable improvement’ was 38.9%, ‘improvement’ 16.7% and ‘no efficacy’ 44.4%. On the other hand, the 14 patients who rejected to use dentures had no efficacy.
It was very difficult to treat senile old patients, because they had a tendency to reject to use dentures.
From the results above, it was suggested that if patients accept using the dentures, over a half of them would have improvement in terms of activity of daily living. Moreover, dental and medical cooperation would be very important in the process of these treatments and in clarifying the relations between general and dental conditions.
When he/she goes out, he/she can use traffic facilities. He/she goes out as far as the neighborhood.
He/she can go out with any help and his/her living is performed leaving the bed for almost the whole day. He/she goes out with low frequency and he/she is bedridden in the daytime.
He/she can ride on a wheelchair, he/she can eat or leave the bed to excrete. He/she can ride on a wheelchair with any help
He/she can turn over in bed by him/herself He/she can not turn over in bed by him/herself
Independent Life
Rank J
Although he/she is handicapped, he/she can live almost independently and can go out independently.
Semi- Bedridden Life
Rank A
His/her daily living is performed almost independently inside of a house, but he/she can not go out without any help.
Bedridden Life
Rank B
His/her living inside of a house required some help, the living in the daytime is done mainly on the bed, however, a sitting posture can be kept.
Rank C
He/she is living on the bed all day and can not excrete, eat or change clothes without any help.
Ministry of Health and Welfare (Japan) 1991
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