Meanings of oral health on old age

Abstract

This paper is the result of a research directed by a semi-structured questionnaire, applied to individual interview situation, when we asked eight old people, of both sexes, between 67 and 85 years, to describe the histories of their own mouths, the goal was to identify and analyze the responses that show your position on the issue of oral health. Furthermore, in order to increase dental knowledge in old age, as well as try to qualify actions and services for the elderly. The subject, functionally independent, were selected from among the residents of a Long Term Care Institutions and among the active participants of an Open University to Maturity, precisely because it is believed that characters of these two environments think differently about health and oral health. It is a qualitative research, with an interdisciplinary approach, seeking answers to questions of the same semantic field, albeit in different relationships: oral health, oral care, oral habits, dentist, tooth, toothache, general health of the body, prosthesis and aesthetics, aesthetics and body, public health, and old people`s rights. The results were analyzed based on all these histories of life and on each point of view. It was concluded that the meanings of oral health in old age, manifest by these subjects, maintain relationship with familiar examples valued by them, with social life, the quality of relationships inside and outside their homes, their well-being, sexuality, and other topics exposed during the research.