[Adaptation of dental home care--report number 1: Limitation of dental home care].
In 1985, we established a home care team which treats elderly and handicapped patients who cannot easily come to our clinic for treatments. The demand for home care is increasing, and 70% of this demand is related to dentures-i.e., adjusting dentures or making new dentures. Through the use of portable equipment, the home care team is able to cope effectively with this demand. However, some patients who experience difficulty eating as a result of their dental conditions require immediate attention. Furthermore, some patients require frequent follow-up. In such cases, time becomes more of an issue. Cases which were found to be difficult for the home care team include: treatments involving existing teeth where more than one tooth was involved, severe cares requiring surgical treatment, and cases requiring close monitoring of a patient's physical conditions. From our experience we know there is a great demand for home care, especially among elderly and handicapped patients; we also know that the risk factors increase and that there are limitations to the kind of care we can effectively deliver. Therefore in order to ensure the patient's safety and conduct effective treatment, it is critical that we evaluate each patient's condition carefully and thoroughly. Furthermore, it is important to develop a treatment plan and to conduct treatment while comprehensively monitoring the patient's condition.
Murayama
F
F
Hinode Dental Office Makomanai.
Kawanami
S
S
Ishida
Y
Y
Usui
Y
Y
Ono
S
S
Tokura
S
S
Kawada
I
I
Kudou
N
N
D000368:Aged; D017742:Dental Care for Chronically Ill / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D012307:Risk Factors