Oral health and Nutritional Status in Patients Affected with Parkinson's Disease.

Abstract

Objective: 1. To assess the Oral Health and Nutritional Status of Parkinson's disease affected patients. Background: The prevalence of Parkinson's disease (PD) is expected to increase over the next decade. The disease has several implications relating to oral and general health, and are manageable with proper awareness and knowledge. The aim of the present study was to assess oral health status and nutritional status which may influence oral and general health among patients with Parkinson's disease. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted to assess the Oral Health and Nutritional Status of Parkinson's disease affected patients. The study population consisted of 75 subjects in the range of 60 -76 years. Oral health status was assessed using the WHO Oral Health Assessment Form 1997, Nutritional status using anthropometric measurement of Body Mass Index after obtaining informed consent. Data was analyzed using SPSS 17 software and the statistical tests performed were Chi-square and ANOVA. Results: In the present study, the frequency of untreated caries, periodontal diseases, and missing teeth of was significantly high. The proportion of filled teeth was insignificant while the need for prosthesis was largely unmet. Patients had more complaints of chewing difficulties and denture discomfort than controls. More than half of the patients had problems with swallowing. Intra oral mucosal lesion was more prevalent on the buccal mucosa region. (61.5%) of subjects were found to be underweight while (38.5%) subjects were considered as having normal nutritional status. Conclusions: The affected patients had poor oral health and general status and required restorative and prosthetic therapy. These findings may help as adjunct for the personal care attendant of Parkinson's disease patients for improving their oral and general health which would be helpful in making health care interventions strengthening community-based palliative care for parkinsonian patients.