Abstract
During the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan, special nursing home staff often requested that home-visit dental treatment be discontinued. Even after the pandemic was recategorized as a class five infectious disease, infection control measures persisted in these homes. This case report presents treatment at a special nursing home where visiting dental care is restricted as an infection control measure. A 90-year-old woman in one of the homes refused to wear dentures, even after becoming infected with COVID-19, and sought care after a near-choking incident involving a sweet red bean bun. Although only five roots remained in the oral cavity, the food texture was unsuitable for gum mastication. Because the patient’s refusal to wear dentures was thought to be due to impaired cognitive function, forgoing dentures and dietary modification to reduce the risk of choking were recommended. Due to wet phlegm accumulation in the oral cavity, the patient was also instructed on oral care methods to prevent aspiration pneumonia, and oral hygiene management was implemented. As a result, the patient no longer had wet phlegm but refused to wear the dentures. We instructed the facility staff to continue the changed dysphagia diet. This report presents the efficacy of medical-care coordination for home-visit dental treatment, within the limitations of emerging infectious diseases.
