Consideration in Planning Dental Treatment of Older Adults

When caring for the oral health of frail and functionally dependent older adults, it is important to understand their general health and oral health problems to make a diagnosis. There are multiple treatment strategies available to care for their needs; many may not be evidence based. Dental treatment planning for older adults is as much art as science and requires clinicians to understand how patients are functioning in their environments and how oral health care fits into their needs and lifestyle. This article discusses a variety of treatment planning techniques and illustrates the problem with a longitudinal case history.