Prevalence of Oral Lesions in the Elderly

Geriatric dentistry refers to dealing with oral diseases including prevention and treatment in old individuals. The aim of this investigation was to examine the types and frequency of oral lesions in the elderly.

The study involved 75 elderly persons. The clinical diagnosis was established by correlating the aetiological factor associated with the lesion and by systematic examination of the oral mucosa and classifying those alterations according to the epidemiological guidelines for the diagnosis of oral mucosal diseases. During the clinical examination, the following elements were analysed: features of the lesion, anatomical location, extension, aetiological factors or related factors, dental status, alcohol, tobacco, trauma, use of prosthesis and if such were well adapted.

Sixty lesions were diagnosed in 75 patients. These were classified according to clinical, histopathological and microbiological diagnosis and were distributed into 15 different clinical entities. The more prevalent pathologies were inflammatory, reactive and associated with long-term use of prostheses or ill-adapted prostheses, since 67% of the patients with lesions were using prostheses. Of the lesions related to prosthesis use, denture stomatitis was the most common one, representing 20 cases (33.3%). The second most frequent lesion was erythematous candidiasis (10%). The other most frequent lesions in this study were lingua plicata, xerostomia and pseudomembranous candidiasis.

Oral and perioral tissues undergo different functional and structural changes with ageing. The role of the dentist and stomatologist includes the management of systemic, nutritional and pharmacological oral manifestations in order to establish an early diagnosis and subsequent accurate treatment.