Oral health in Danish hospitalized psychiatric patients

The purpose of the present study was to describe oral health status in a group of hospitalized mental patients, and to study the association between dental caries and mental illness. A total of 278 psychiatric patients admitted to a regional Danish hospital were described with respect to the number of teeth present, DMFS, gingival and periodontal status and presence of removable dentures. The oral health status of the hospitalized mental patients was relatively poor compared with the general population of the area. For instance, actual decayed surfaces were found among 55% of the participants compared to the reference figure of 23% in the general population. A multiple regression analysis demonstrated that DMFS was related to duration of mental illness and to psychiatric diagnosis. Furthermore, a multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the presence of actual decayed surfaces was associated with neglect of toothbrushing, subjective symptoms of xerostomia and participation in the hospital dental program. To conclude, variables of mental illness and psychiatric treatment and care were demonstrated to influence oral health. This underlines the need of special preventive programs aimed at hospitalized psychiatric patients.