Abstract

Although maintaining oral health is definitely challenging and different in old age, oral health is not distinct from general health. Even though only a small number of elderly people have physical or mental conditions that necessitate a special interest in the dental office, one should not assume that all elderly people share these conditions.Understanding a few aspects of old age is necessary to achieve health. Tissues in the body become harder with age,and the accumulation of waste products in cells and the loss of lubrication impair the functions of various organs.The dental profession faces numerous obstacles when developing and implementing comprehensive protocols for elderly preventive dentistry. Even though a specific protocol must be tailored to each patient's specific requirements,there are some elderly-specific factors that may influence these protocols.