Introduction
Oral health problems among elderly people are an important public health issues in Thailand and worldwide.1 Poor oral health care among the elderly is seen in the high level of tooth loss, dental caries, and the prevalence of periodontal diseases that have a major bearing on the quality of life, and lead to increasing dental and medical expenses.2,3
A Thailand report released 2017,4 found that of the elderly aged between 60–74 years (56.1%) have at least 20 active permanent teeth and (40.2%) have four pairs of posterior occlusion.4 Poor occlusion performance and periodontitis with tissue and root canal damage, increases the risk of inflammation, pain, swelling, infection, and loss of teeth among the elderly.4 The report also found untreated tooth decay and, root canal decay associated with receding gingival recession in older age is prevalent in Thailand.4,5…
