Objective: To evaluate the oral health care provided to subjects with Alzheimer's disease (AD) as reported by their family caregivers.
Method: Structured interviews were performed with 56 Alzheimer caregivers from the Group of relatives and friends of subjects with AD of the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre. Spearman and Pearson correlations were performed.
Results: The mean age of the subjects with AD was 76.09 (+/-7.76) years, 53.6% were female and 58.9% were in the advanced stage of AD. The mean number of teeth present was 11.66 (+/-10.94), and oral hygiene was performed 2.21 (+/-1.04) times/day. The provision of oral health care to subjects with AD was carried out by caregivers in 85.7%. Oral hygiene was provided by the caregivers to the subjects with AD with the aid of a toothbrush and/or gauze embedded with non-fluoridated mouthwash in the majority of the cases. Complete dental prostheses were cleaned with the aid of mouthwashes instead of denture brushes by 44% of the subjects/caregivers. There was a significant association between the number of teeth in the subjects with AD and the number of oral hygiene procedures performed per day and current smoking.
Conclusion: Oral health care planning for subjects with AD should take into account caregivers' perceptions and knowledge about oral health and hygiene as caregivers represent the primary providers to these patients when the disease progresses from early to more advanced stages.