Innovation · Care-home innovation
Care-home innovation
Helping people keep their teeth for longer.
Many people enter a care home with advanced dental work, but no longer have the ability, support or knowledge to maintain it. This approach uses silver diamine fluoride to slow decay — and may help reduce aspiration pneumonia.
A simple material, used well, could help people keep their teeth — and stay more comfortable — for longer.
Many people enter care homes with advanced dental treatment, but may no longer have the ability, support or knowledge to maintain it correctly. This potential solution could help people keep their teeth for longer.
I have included a paper showing a possible reduction in aspiration pneumonia in care homes. There are surprisingly few original research papers in this area. However, we do know that the same material works well for tooth decay, which is painful and common — even if it is not usually fatal.
See it in practice
The innovation, and how it’s applied
A short demonstration of the approach and how it can be used by dental and care-home teams working together.
According to the Cochrane review, there is currently only one piece of research under way on the effect of SDF in this setting.
The wider service
Bringing it together with Dental Health Service
How the innovation fits into a fuller picture — dental examinations and ongoing maintenance carried out more effectively, making preventive care viable for dental teams, care homes and residents alike.
Looking ahead
Oral health in a digital age
A presentation to BASCD on the resources available now and the ones coming next — how digital tools, prevention and collaboration change what a care-home dental service can offer.
The evidence
The research behind it
This summary is drawn from STORM, a structured research tool, so it should not contain any invented claims. More summaries are on our research page.
Put it into practice
To implement this approach and find the available resources, visit Dental Health Service.