Oral health experiences of people living with Parkinson's disease: a scoping review

Jessie E Tebbutt; Zoe Marshman; Sarah R Baker

doi:10.1038/s41415-024-7058-8

Oral health experiences of people living with Parkinson's disease: a scoping review

Br Dent J. 2024 Feb 7. doi: 10.1038/s41415-024-7058-8. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Jessie E Tebbutt¹, Zoe Marshman², Sarah R Baker³

Affiliations

¹ Academic Clinical Fellow in Special Care Dentistry, School of Clinical Dentistry, University of Sheffield, 19 Claremont Crescent, S10 2TA, UK. Jessie.tebbutt@nhs.net.
² Professor/Honorary Consultant of Dental Public Health, School of Clinical Dentistry, University of Sheffield, 19 Claremont Crescent, S10 2TA, UK.
³ Professor of Psychology, School of Clinical Dentistry, University of Sheffield, 19 Claremont Crescent, S10 2TA, UK.

PMID: 38326461
DOI: 10.1038/s41415-024-7058-8

Abstract

Background and aim Parkinson's disease is the fastest growing and second most common progressive neurodegenerative condition in the UK; poised to represent a major societal and health care challenge. The scoping review aims to provide an overview of the literature on the oral health (OH) experiences of people living with Parkinson's, identifying current research gaps and future priorities.Method Search strategies included three electronic databases, two grey literature databases, relevant organisations, specialist journals and hand searching of the reference lists. A data extraction tool was developed and piloted.Results A total of 121 items were included in the review. Four themes were identified: OH impact, education and training, service delivery and wider impacts of OH for people with Parkinson's (PwP). The majority of studies included were cross-sectional in design, describing the OH status of PwP.Conclusion The majority of research to date has focused on OH impact. Areas for future research include use of qualitative studies exploring the experiences, attitudes and priorities of PwP and their care partners. Inclusion of medical, dental and allied health care professionals, together with people with lived experience, is required to develop, implement and evaluate interventions to support OH.