Oral Health Care for Dementia Patients with Dental Implants

According to statistics, someone, somewhere within the world develops dementia every 3 seconds. In 2020, at least 55 million people throughout the world were living with this condition. That number is expected to double at least once every 2 decades.

If you have a loved one with dementia that has dental implants, it is imperative that you learn what you need to know about the dental devices, the care of the mouth, and the overall health. In this brief guide, you will learn just that, and more.

Dentures Benefit Dementia Patients

According to studies, dental implants are highly beneficial to dementia patients. If your loved one has missing teeth, the dental implants will not only provide them with an aesthetically-pleasing smile, but will help ensure that they are obtaining the proper nutrition.

Missing teeth often cause issues in chewing, which results in the dementia patient not getting the vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that are required to sustain health.

Additionally, medical research has established that dementia patients that wear their dental implants have increased brain wave activity. In turn, this improved cognitive function and slowed brain deterioration.

Proper Dental Care Is Essential

Most dementia patients will experience some degree of complication in cleaning and caring for dentures or dental implants; however, this is essential. It helps prevent the spread of tooth decay, reducing the risk for the development of gum disease, and aids in maintaining an overall healthy mouth. Most dementia patients will struggle with dental cleaning substances, forget to care for their dentures and to brush their teeth, and even experience agitation when receiving assistance from others. You may use the following steps to assist your loved one:

  1. Consult with an Oral Health Specialist – When helping a dementia patient with their oral health care needs, you should know exactly what it is that needs to be done and how it needs to be done. You can uncover this information by consulting with the individual’s oral health care specialist. These professionals will often have strategies and techniques that help people with memory impairment issues.
  2. Use Brief Instructions – Dementia not only causes issues in remembering. It also causes a person to lose their ability to understand and follow instructions. You should use brief, to-the-point instructions that make it easy for your loved one to know what to do and have some degree of understanding of why they need to do it.
  3. Perform Activities Together – When working with your loved one with dementia, perform oral health care steps together. This will work even if you do not wear dental implants. By mimicking what you do, they will remember what they have to do.

Contact Us Today

Does your loved one have dementia and need dental implants? Do they already have dentures or dental implants and need assistance? Are you experiencing difficulties in helping them proceed with oral health care steps?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, we encourage you to contact us here at Implant & Perio Specialists to set up an appointment. Upon meeting our team, we will consult with you and your loved one and help in establishing a solid oral health care regimen: 316-330-4050