Nurses, who take care of patients with dementia, have been able to formulate a new kind of customized approach to dental hygiene. This has come about with the study that has been a pilot study that has been conducted by a team of nurses.
The study found out that poor oral health can lead to pneumonia and cardiovascular disease as well as periodontal disease. In fact, even though these illnesses are not usually associated with the mouth they do go on to cause great hardship. According to Jablonski who is the assistant professor of nursing in Penn State persons with dementia cannot take care of them and need care.
The new approach to oral hygiene will certainly help dementia patients. Many of their strategies focus on making the patient feel more comfortable before and while care is provided which makes them more open to the care that is being provided. There are fifteen strategies that are there for the use of patients with dementia. These strategies include approaching patients at eye level if they are seated, smiling while interacting and guiding patients to perform their own care by placing a hand over the patient's hand and leading.
Dementia can become a great threat with people who aren’t able to take care of themselves and therefore their oral hygiene suffers. They need assistance with their dental hygiene, as well as with other hygiene.
Jablonski and her team conducted a pilot study with seven people who had either moderate or severe cases of dementia. At the beginning of the study all seven subjects had poor oral health lower scores for oral hygiene. However, with the right strategies that were used these patients with dementia will be able to benefit greatly.