Study Says: Don’t Sleep with Dentures In

With every new medical study that is released for publication, individuals can discover potential strategies for prolonging not only the length of their lives but the quality of those lives as well, which is just as important as how long a person lives.

One new study was published recently in the Journal of Dental Research , and it was titled by its authors as “Denture Wearing During Sleep Doubles the Risk of Pneumonia in the Very Elderly.” As the title clearly states, much older persons, specifically those who are 85 years or older, who sleep with dentures—removable appliances used for replacing missing teeth—could have an increased risk of developing pneumonia.

Among seniors, poor oral hygiene and oral health have been gradually recognized as some of the more major risk factors for developing pneumonia. However, very little research has been available regarding the connection between pneumonia and a patient’s oral health.

According to this new study, patients who wear dentures while sleeping are liable to have poorer denture hygiene routines, fewer visits to the dentist, tongue and denture plaque contributing to gum disease and tooth decay, and candidiasis, a common fungal infection.

The researchers investigated links between occurrences of pneumonia and oral health routines amongst 524 randomly chosen seniors who were 85 years of age or older (with the average age being 87.8) living in the metropolitan area of Tokyo, Japan.

The researchers also described their findings as being from a “limited,” “relatively small” study requiring further research. Over three years, there were a reported 48 instances of associations with pneumonia. Of 453 denture wearers, 41 percent or 186 individuals who slept with their dentures in had a higher risk of developing pneumonia compared to those who took their dentures out before going to sleep.

What the results of this study ultimately provide is empirical proof that wearing dentures while sleeping is linked with not only oral inflammatory burdens but with incident pneumonia as well. This could, as per the American and International Associations for Dental Research, suggest possible implications of dental health programs for pneumonia prevention in senior populations.

With these results indicating preliminary associations between pneumonia and oral health in seniors, nighttime denture wearing should be dissuaded in these patients whether it’s their dental professional or a family member who does so. As well, as with teeth, seniors who wear dentures should be encouraged to brush their dentures daily in order to remove food debris and plaque.

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