Oral candidosis, denture cleanliness and hygiene habits in an elderly population.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Poor denture hygiene and Candida infections are very common among elderly denture wearers. Candida species are usually innocuous, but they can cause disease when conditions are favorable. Oral hygiene habits have been found to be poor among the elderly. This may be due to decreasing manual abilities due to advanced age. Dentures act as a reservoir for yeasts, and this may be aggravated by poorly fitting and old dentures. The purpose of this study was to determine oral hygiene habits, denture cleanliness and presence of yeasts in elderly complete denture wearers.

METHODS: 42 subjects who had worn complete upper dentures for at least six months were surveyed. The mean age of the subjects was 74 years. Information about denture age, denture hygiene and hygiene habits of subjects was obtained through a structured interview. Clinical examination was conducted by one author. Denture cleanliness was assessed by using the Schubert and Schubert index. For cytological examination, palatal swabs were taken. A chi-square test was used to analyze the results.

RESULTS: A significant correlation was seen between oral candidosis and frequency of denture cleaning, and also between candidosis and denture cleanliness. There was no statistically significant correlation between denture cleaning methods and candidosis. The relationship between denture age and the presence of Candida was not significant. There was a significant correlation between denture cleanliness and denture age, cleaning method or frequency of cleaning.

CONCLUSIONS: Only 16.7% of dentures worn by the elderly are properly cleaned. Older dentures tended to be dirtier than newer ones. There was a significant correlation between poor denture hygiene and prevalence of Candida.