Abstract
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the optimal dental treatment time from a questionnaire for the elderly. The subjects were 100 outpatients aged≧65 years(elderly group)in the Tohoku University Dental Hospital and 100 in their 20 s(control group)after obtaining their informed consent. A questionnaire survey was performed about the desired dental treatment time and good/poor physical condition, their habit of napping, time going to hospital, systemic disease, and medicines. Finally, the optimal dental treatment time was evaluated. In the elderly group, the desired time for dental treatment was most frequently 10:00〜11:00 a. m. (42%), with 73% preferring treatment in the morning (9:00〜12:00). In the control group, the desired time varied widely, from 9:00 to 21:00. The distribution of the desired treatment time was significantly different between the two groups (Mann-Whitney U-test, p<0.01). In the elderly group, 56% complained of a poor physical condition immediately after waking up in the morning and from after lunch to the evening, however very few complained in the morning (9:00〜12:00), and 23% hadahabit of napping within a wide time zone between 11:00 and 17:00 with a peak at 14:00. In the control group, 21% complained of a poor physical condition, mostly immediately after waking up in the morning (14%). However, few controls had a habit of napping. Consequently, complaints of a poor physical condition showed significant differences in the number of subjects and the time distribution between the two groups(Mann-Whitney U-test, p<0.01). In the elderly group, 89% had medical treatment, however neither systemic disease, nor medicines affected the dental treatment time. The tendency to want dental treatment from 9:00 at 12:00 when their physical condition is stable was seen in elderly patients. A possibility that the optimal time zone reflects biorhythms was suggested.
