• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.457-467
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• 2020

Objectives: This study confirms the current status of visiting oral health-care services for the elderly to draw policy implications for revitalization of the visiting oral health care services in the future. Methods: First, a survey was conducted on health centers about the current status of the elderly visiting oral health-care service and how to revitalize it. Next, the number of oral hygiene services provided to the elderly was checked in the long-term care insurance system. Results: Oral health education (100%) was the most common practice in visiting oral health-care service for the elderly, and the most difficult thing in providing services was the lack of dental hygienists (38.9%). The status of oral health-care services in the long-term care insurance system for elderly revealed that the total number of service claims has been confirmed to be zero since the introduction of the system. Conclusions: Despite the existence of a system that provides elderly visiting oral healthcare services, to revitalize it, the law must be amended to secure a dental hygienist as the main agent of the activity and to further take responsibility for autonomous authority and performance.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.759-767
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• 2013

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the oral health status of elderly people and their oral health-related quality of life. Methods : The subjects were the elderly people over 65 years old in Busan. A total of 479 elderly people participated in the study from general hospital, two research institutes, eight dental clinics, six welfare institutions, sixteen senior centers, and three nursing homes. The oral health impact profile-14 (OHIP-14) was used in the routine dental checkups of the elderly people. Results : Those who had no oral symptoms had a better oral health-related quality of life. Among the subfactors of the OHIP-14, significant differences were shown in functional limitation(p=0.001), physical pain(p<0.001), emotional discomfort(p<0.001), physical disability(p=0.001), emotional disability (p=0.001), social disability(p=0.005), physical handicap(p=0.003) and total OHIP-14(p<0.001). Those who had 18 sound teeth(natural teeth) or more had a better oral health-related quality of life. Among the subfactors of the OHIP-14, significant differences were shown in functional limitation(p<0.001), physical pain(p=0.007), emotional discomfort(p=0.019), physical disability(p=0.018), Emotional disability(p=.032) and total OHIP-14 (p=0.006). Conclusions : The results revealed a close relationship between oral health status and oral health-related quality of life. The number of sound teeth(natural teeth) and frequency of toothbrushing had a more positive influence. Therefore oral health programs for the elderly people can preserve remaining teeth. Toothbrushing is the best way to improve the quality of life in the elderly people.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.899-910
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• 2017

Objectives: This study was conducted to identify the rates of perceived stress of elderly people over 65 years old and to confirm the influence of stress on general health and oral health status. Methods: Using data from the National Health and Nutrition Survey for 2014, 1,472 people over 65 years of age were selected as final subjects. Stress was used as an independent variable and dependent variables were included physical health (perceived health status), mental health (depression), and oral health (perceived oral health status). The following confounding variables were adjusted for the current study: demographic characteristics (gender, age, education level, house income) and health - related characteristics (drinking, smoking, exercise, frequency of tooth brushing, using oral care product, dental exam, comorbidity, restrict activity). Complex sampling analysis was applied and logistic regression was performed to determine the effects of stress on physical health, mental health and oral health status. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (95% Confidence Interval, 95% CI) were calculated. Results: Logistic regression indicated that stress was significantly associated with low physical health (OR=2.18, 95%CI: 1.49-3.20), low mental health (OR=8.68, 95%CI: 4.98-15.11), low oral health (OR=1.53, 95%CI: 1.06-2.21) after adjusting for confounding variables. Conclusions: The perceived stress of the elderly was found to be related to the general health and oral health status. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate stress as a predictor of health risk for the health promotion of the elderly on multidisciplinary assessment and continuous evaluation. In addition, health support policies should be provided to achieve good health status for elderly.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.455-462
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• 2018

Objectives: This study was carried out to identify plans to activate home visit oral care services by dental hygienists in Long-term care insurance. Methods: In-depth interviews were carried out with 21 Long-term Home Care Center Managers as target. A total of 21 (27%) Home Care Centers were selected through convenience sampling among 78 Home Care Centers that are located in Won-ju city. The Managers were presented with questions and answered in 20-30 minutes in accordance with the interview instructions. The interview results were analyzed through content analysis, and their experiences and perceptions were classified into two themes and categorized again into four components. Results: The Home Care Center Managers suggested that dental hygienists should activate home-visit oral hygiene services. It is necessary to improve the management process and awareness of the elderly. Conclusions: To activate oral hygiene services, it is necessary to improve the service guideline and enhance the efficiency of the service process. This should be acceptable both to the elderly who need the services and the dental hygienists who provide them.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.205-215
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• 2018

Objectives: The purpose of the study is to investigate the relationship between the number of remaining teeth and bone health status among adults over 65 years old. Methods: The study subjects were 1,843 adults over 65 years old drawn from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) in 2008-2010. Oral health status included the number of remaining teeth, and prosthetic appliance status. Bone health statuses were assessed using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). Bone health statuses were classified into normal (T-score ${\geq}-1.0$), osteopenia (-2.5 < T-score < -1.0), and osteoporosis (T-score ${\leq}-2.5$). Complex samples chi-square test was used to estimate the relationship between the number of remaining teeth and bone health status, and related factors included in the model were analyzed with the complex samples logistic regression analysis. Results: Using the multinomial logistic regression analytic method, the elderly having 20 or more remaining teeth and those having less than 20 remaining teeth with prosthesis were compared. The latter group had 1.89 times higher rate of being diagnosed as having osteoporosis. Conclusions: This study suggests that oral health is an important factor for geriatric osteoporosis. Therefore, in order to prevent fractures due to osteoporosis and osteoporosis in old age, it is necessary to be aware of the relationship between oral health and osteoporosis, and oral health should be considered when preparing preventive management strategies.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.629-637
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• 2021

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the degree of activity restriction and the number of remaining teeth of the elderly and to analyze the correlation. Methods: Statistical analysis of the collected data was analyzed using the SPSS window program 25.0 version (IBM) using a composite sample for the analysis of the 7th National Health and Nutrition Survey data, and a composite sample multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to confirm the effect of activity restrictions on the number of remaining teeth. Results: As a result of analyzing the effect of activity restriction on the number of remaining teeth, in the model that analyzed only activity restriction variables, the risk ratio of less than 20 remaining teeth was 1.61 times higher and the age-adjusted model, the risk ratio of less than 20 remaining teeth was 1.46 times higher (p<0.001). In the model that corrected all variables, the results were not statistically significant. Conclusions: In this study, the relationship between activity restriction and the number of remaining teeth could be confirmed, and in subsequent studies, more in-depth studies are considered to be needed using sub-variables that specifically reflect the reasons for activity restriction.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.151-158
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• 2021

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of general and oral health status on dementia. Methods: Questionnaires were used for the KDSQ-C (Korean Dementia Screening Questionnaires-Cognition) and to investigate the oral health status of the participants. An independent t-test was conducted to analyze the differences between general health and oral health status depending on the normal and suspected dementia groups. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the effects of general and oral health status on dementia. Results: Regarding the health status of the subjects assessed by the KDSQ-C, the higher the current health status and the higher the exercise status, the lower was the dementia level (p<0.05). During the assessment of oral health conditions in KDSQ-C subjects, dementia was more suspected in subjects with dental decay and periodontal disease than in those without dental decay (p<0.05). Conclusions: Dementia has been confirmed to be closely related to general and oral health conditions. Therefore, oral health-related programs are essential for dementia prevention programs. Since dental hygienists are best suited for providing oral care to older adults with dementia, it is considered essential to reflect their occupation in future national policies.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.601-614
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• 2019

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the present conditions and problems of oral health care in senior citizens with dementia using a qualitative research method, through focused group interviews. Methods: Data was collected for approximately one month from May 2019. The subjects were divided into two groups: care workers and family caregivers. Fifteen participants were included in the study. Results: In-depth interviews with the care workers revealed the following three categories: characteristics of senile dementia patients, oral health care in senile dementia patients, and oral health care education. In-depth interviews with the family caregivers revealed the following four categories: characteristics of senile dementia patients, oral health care in senile dementia patients, oral health care education, and burden of care. The central themes common to both the care workers and family caregivers were the challenges owing to the characteristics of senile dementia patients, poor health condition of the senile dementia patients, difficulty in oral health care of the senile dementia patients, the desire to receive oral health care education and related information, and to access the information more easily. Additional central themes specific to the care workers were, the applicability of the intervention programs, variability between the facilities, and the problems of oral health care education. An additional central theme specific to the family caregivers was the burden of care. Conclusions: It is necessary to provide oral health care education and information to care workers and family caregivers of senile dementia patients, and to manage and support the dental health professionals ready to care for senile dementia patients. In addition, support to the family caregivers should not be limited only to the financial aspects, but also consider the psychological and emotional difficulties.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.555-564
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• 2019

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate how mental health status affects oral health in the elderly. Methods: The subjects of the study provided the data for the sixth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2013 to 2015. Four-hundred and twenty-one subjects were selected for the study. All data were analyzed by complex sampling frequency, chi-square test, and composite multiple regression analysis using SPSS 21.0 version. In addition, a significance level of 0.05 was considered. Results: The general factors affecting cases of periodontal disease were general characteristics, mental health status, oral health status, elderly males, household income, education level, daily brushing frequency, speaking, and stress. The effect of periodontal disease was 1.64 times higher in the male group than in the female group (p<0.001). In the household income level, the 'low' group had 1.91 times more periodontal disease, while the 'mid low' group had 1.64 times more periodontal disease than the 'high' group (p<0.05). Periodontal disease was found to be lower in the group that recognized subjective oral health status as 'good' (p<0.05). The study subjects had low levels of periodontal disease when there was no speaking difficulty (p<0.05). Conclusions: Therefore, in order to improve oral health of the elderly, it is necessary to understand the mental health condition of the elderly and prepare proper oral health education programs accordingly. Institutional devices for various oral health projects should be prepared, as well.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.731-742
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• 2019

Objectives: To analyze the association between sleep duration and the number of remaining teeth in people aged 65 years or older in order to provide basic data for improving sleep quality and developing oral health programs for teeth maintenance. Methods: The raw data for the analysis were obtained from the sixth Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) dataset, conducted between 2013 and 2015. The 4,340 subjects included in the study underwent oral examinations and then proceeded to answer related questions. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS (ver 23.0) program via composite samples, with the calculations for mean, standard deviation, chi-square test, and logistic return analysis being performed. Results: An analysis of the effect of sleep duration on the number of remaining teeth among people aged >65 years old showed that if the confounding variables were not corrected for, the risk of having less than 9 hours of sleep was 1.40 times higher (95% CI: 1.06-1.86). However, this was not statistically significant in models that corrected for gender, age, and other confounding variables (p>0.05). Conclusions: The association between sleep duration among the elderly with their number of remaining teeth was confirmed. Therefore, measures to improve sleep quality and oral care practices to maintain the remaining teeth in people over 65 years old should be developed.