International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health | February 2019 | Vol 6 | Issue 2 Page 1 International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health Vasthare R et al. Int J Community Med Public Health. 2019 Feb;6(2):xxx-xxx http://www.ijcmph.com pISSN 2394-6032 | eISSN 2394-6040 Review Article Geriatric oral health concerns, a dental public health narrative Ramprasad Vasthare 1 *, Anil V. Ankola 2 , Arron Lim Yan Ran 1 , Prateek Mansingh 1 INTRODUCTION Old age is a normal, inescapable, physiological phenomenon. Gerontology is the study of the physical and psychological changes that a body undergoes as it ages and geriatrics is the branch of medicine or social medicine that deals with health and care of the aged people. This diverse segment can be subdivided into the following categories based on their age: 1  65 to 74 years (young old) - relatively healthy and active;  75 to 84 years (old old) - range from those who are healthy and fit and those who are riddled with a cocktail of comorbidities;  85 years (oldest old) - most frail group. This segment is rapidly increasing in numbers day by day due to better healthcare that extends the longevity of human in developed countries. Nowadays, retaining teeth as people advance in their years has become a predominant priority for all with more people adopting prophylactic measures such as drinking fluoridated water and consistent use of fluoride dentifrices. People are taking care of their teeth with strict regimens aimed at taking the best care of their teeth to ensure the longevity of their teeth. 2 Hence, ABSTRACT Across the world, the segment of the elderly in populations is seen to be increasing at a rapid rate. There also exists a trend in which more teeth are retained as age increases due to effective dental public health measures like fluoridation. This inevitably places an increased need for dental healthcare among the geriatric populations. Since oral health greatly affects the systemic health of aged individuals, it is imperative for dentists and physicians to work together as a team to impart treatment to the best of one’s abilities for geriatric patients. It is therefore, necessary to first assess the oral health concerns surrounding the geriatric population from the perspective of public health dentistry. Relationship of the elderly with periodontal disease, dental caries, salivary hyposalivation and xerostomia, cognitive changes, and simultaneous usage of diverse medications was discussed. This paper reviewed the literature and then examined and discussed the various problems mentioned in depth and suggested recommendations for a plan of action. Knowledge about the specific oral health concerns and issues will help to better position us in developing strategies for providing better oral healthcare to the geriatric population in addition to the existing systemic healthcare. In the future, the elderly will make up a huge portion of the demographic visiting dentist regularly for a myriad of oral health problems. Dental health professionals therefore, must have adequate training and competency to deal with the predicament of this geriatric population. Preventive and treatment services can ensure healthy aging which will improve the quality of life. Keywords: Geriatrics, Oral health, Elderly, Ageing, Geriatric dentistry, Gerodontology Department of Public Health Dentistry, 1 Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Manipal, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Udupi district, 2 KLES’s Institute of Dental Sciences, Belgaum, Karnataka, India Received: 11 December 2018 Accepted: 26 December 2018 *Correspondence: Dr. Ramprasad Vasthare, E-mail: vasthareram@gmail.com Copyright: © the author(s), publisher and licensee Medip Academy. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License, which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20185509