Advisor(s)

Maria Geisinger

Committee Member(s)

Amjad Javed
Farahnaz Fahimipour
Nicolaas Geurs
Ramzi Abou-Arraj
Rita Jablonski

Document Type

Thesis

Date of Award

6-18-2026

Degree Name

Master of Science in Dentistry (MSDent)

School

School of Dentistry

Department

Dentistry

Abstract

This retrospective analysis explores the viability of employing intraoral videography to identify dental needs among long-term care (LTC) facility residents with cognitive impairment and/or mild to moderate dementia. Inadequate oral hygiene in these individuals can lead to dental plaque buildup, oral dysbiosis, gingivitis, dental caries, and periodontitis. Such conditions can impact both oral and systemic health. However, delivering oral hygiene in LTC facilities faces challenges due to care-resistant behavior triggered during mouth care. And many individuals in residential LTC facilities do not have access to dental care outside of severe emergencies due to cost, reimbursement patterns, lack of access to dental health care providers, and lack of effective screening mechanisms to identify early signs of oral disease. Given the rising prevalence of dementia and its association with medications causing xerostomia and increased caries rates, there is an urgent need to enhance oral healthcare in patients suffering with dementia disease. Furthermore, the impacts of oral bacteria and disease in patients with progressive dementia symptoms can lead to pain, undiagnosed infections, and an increase in patients’ susceptibility to systemic diseases, such as poor glycemic control and pneumonia. The current analysis aims to evaluate the utility of intraoral videography in identifying dental needs while reducing the need for routine dental monitoring transport in this at-risk population. Data, obtained through chart review and videography, will serve as metadata to determine rates of detectable dental caries, tooth fractures, and severe gingival inflammation. Patient demographics, including age, gender, race/ethnicity, medical conditions, smoking status, and dementia severity, will be correlated with videographic images to explore potential associations. The results will illuminate the feasibility of using intraoral videography to perform dental screening using asynchronous teledentistry in LTC facilities, potentially enhancing oral and overall health outcomes in this vulnerable population. Keywords: Intraoral Videography, Teledentistry, Long-Term Care Facilities, Dementia, Oral Health Screening, Geriatric Dentistry

Keywords

Dementia;Geriatric Dentistry;Intraoral Videography;Long-Term Care Facilities;Oral Health Screening;Teledentistry

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