THE DEFINITION OF THE ELDERLY WITH DISABILITIES AND GENERAL AND DENTAL CHARACTERISTICS

고령장애인의 정의와 일반적, 치과적 특징

In Korea, the elderly is defined as the person aged over 65 and the disabled is defined as the person who is registered with Ministry of Health and Welfare. In 2008, the elderly with disabilities was about 770,000. Korea was already poised for an aging society in 2000 and is ahead of and aged society in 2018 and a super aged society in 2026. So, the number of the elderly with disabilities will continue to grow. Various oral diseases can be seen in the elderly with disabilities due to the systemic disease and impaired self oral care, in addition to the physiological aging. Particularly, we should be care for the aspiration pneumonia, which is the major cause of the death of the elderly. As a professional for the special care dentistry, we should understand the general and dental, individual characteristics of the elderly with disabilities and do proper oral care and treatment. Thereby, the quality of life of the patients might be improved.