Dental and Oral Health

Geriatric Dentistry

Oral health, which forms a major fraction of the general health, has its impact on the physical and mental status, which affects the quality of life of geriatric population. In order to provide great oral health care, it is mandatory to focus on the knowledge and education in the field of geriatric dentistry, which will aid in providing optimum health care. Geriatric dentistry has failed to develop as a distinct, independent specialty at the postgraduate level of dental science. Even at the undergraduate level, there is a lack of training and the constituent aspects of geriatric dentistry are not included in the curriculum. Young graduates need to understand the socio-economic, physical, and psychological problems, and the complexity in treating the elderly patients suffering from chronic diseases and long-term medication, as part of their training in oral medicine.