Chemopsychotherapy and its role in prosthodontic failures in elderly patients

Since the introduction of chemopsychotherapy, there has been a change in the approach to treatment of mental and emotional disorders. Instead of being confined to mental institutions, many patients receive ambulatory treatment and are able to carry out their daily routine. Psychotropic drug therapy produces side effects in patients of all ages, but the incidence of side effects after the use of psychotropic drugs is significantly higher in older patients. In addition, the elderly population is more prone to mental disorders, either because of the worsening of conditions present at a younger age or because of changes related to the process of aging. These factors correlate with increased oral disability, which, although unrelated to the mental condition, is cumulative with time and age. Thus the number of elderly patients being treated for mental illness and simultaneously suffering from drug-related disorders of the stomatognatic system is high. Neurologic disorders may interfere with the patient's adjustment to removable dentures, which require a high degree of intricate muscular coordination during function.