Main Medical Illness, Oral Health Complaints and Treatment in Elderly Patients Attending Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM) Dental Clinic

摘要

Objective: The aim of this study was to describe the main oral health and medical problems among elderly patients attending the dental clinic at Hospital USM. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study evaluated 98 patients aged 60 years old and above who attended the clinic from V January 2014 to 30th June 2014. Patient's medical record was obtained from the medical record unit and data on socio-demographic, main dental complaints and medical history were recorded. Results: Edentulism (30.6%) is the main reason for dental attendance followed by dental caries (21.4%), mobile tooth (16.3%) and tooth pain (13.3%). Most patients had hypertension (69.4%), diabetes (35.7%) heart disease (20.4%) and musculo-skeletal disorder (13.3%). Conclusion: In conclusion, the main reason for dental attendance in the elderly are related to the cause of tooth loss and problems arising from tooth loss. Caution should be exercised when attending to the dental problem in elderly patients due to their medical problems.