Elderly person with radiant smile representing integrated oral healthcare

Rethinking Oral Health: How Primary Care and Elderly Voices Can Reshape Our Understanding

Lena Voss in Health & Wellness October 2026 • 4 min read.

"Discover how integrating elderly perspectives and primary healthcare is revolutionizing oral health, leading to more effective and patient-centered care."

The field of dentistry is increasingly recognizing the importance of incorporating diverse perspectives to create a more holistic understanding of oral health. This involves considering the social and historical context of different communities, particularly the elderly, whose experiences and insights can significantly enhance oral healthcare approaches.

By exploring the intersection of elderly individuals' narratives and the principles of social constructionism, we can uncover valuable insights into how meanings of oral health are shaped. This approach acknowledges that our understanding of health is not fixed but is actively constructed through social interactions and cultural contexts.

This article delves into a research study that examines the narratives of elderly individuals regarding their oral health experiences and how primary healthcare can play a crucial role in shaping their understanding. The research aims to bridge the gap between elderly individuals' lived experiences, primary healthcare practices, and the broader social context to foster more effective and patient-centered oral healthcare strategies.

The Wisdom of Elders: Unveiling Perspectives on Oral Health

Elderly person with radiant smile representing integrated oral healthcare

A research study was conducted involving interviews with 14 elderly individuals enrolled in a Family Health Unit in Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil, in 2010. The interviews sought to understand their experiences, beliefs, and attitudes toward oral health, and how their understanding has been shaped by their life experiences and access to healthcare.

Through discourse analysis, two key interpretative repertoires were identified, shedding light on the factors that influence the elderly's understanding of oral health:

Early Information and Dental Assistance: The elderly participants often highlighted the lack of information and adequate dental care during their childhood as a significant factor influencing their current oral health status. This underscores the lasting impact of early experiences on later-life health outcomes.
Primary Healthcare and Meaning-Making: The study revealed the crucial role of primary healthcare in shaping the elderly's understanding of oral health. Access to primary healthcare services and the relationships formed with healthcare professionals influenced how they perceived and managed their oral health.

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Latest Research

Older Adults’ Oral Health and Healthy Ageing

A scoping review on oral health and healthy ageing identifies a gap in research and information about effective treatments and programs for geriatric dental care. It calls for guidelines to help dental and medical professionals integrate oral health into healthy ageing, and for further research assessing intervention effectiveness. Another review links poor oral hygiene in frail older adults to aspiration pneumonia, noting that structured oral-care programs in nursing homes can reduce the risk. These sources point to both a need for stronger evidence and the potential value of organized oral care.

Counterpoints

Barriers to Oral Health in Older Adults

A study of 14 older adults enrolled in a Family Health Unit in Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, interviewed during the first semester of 2010, found that participants’ accounts connected a lack of information and dental assistance in childhood with how primary care shaped their understanding of oral health. A 2024 narrative review notes that poor oral health is not an inevitable consequence of aging, but some older adults may lack regular care. Access to routine dental care can also be limited by dental insurance, financial burden, and transportation. Together, these accounts underscore that access and earlier experiences shape oral health, while age itself does not make poor oral health unavoidable.

These findings emphasize the need to address historical disparities in access to information and dental care, while also recognizing the potential of primary healthcare to empower elderly individuals to take control of their oral health through education, prevention, and patient-centered care.

Transforming Oral Healthcare: A Collaborative Path Forward

This study underscores the transformative potential of integrating elderly individuals' perspectives and primary healthcare strategies in reshaping our understanding and approach to oral health. By embracing social constructionism as a guiding framework, healthcare professionals can create more meaningful and effective interventions that address the unique needs and experiences of this population.

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Expert View

Individualized, Interdisciplinary Oral Care

A 2025 article on comprehensive geriatric assessment concludes that it can inform analysis of oral health problems, treatment planning, and oral healthcare, and emphasizes comprehensive, individualized care plans. A 2025 article on caregiver education likewise describes older adults’ oral health care as challenging amid multiple health problems and insufficient support, and recommends individualized care and education, while exploring technology use. A 2026 article argues that progress requires policymakers, healthcare institutions, and professionals to prioritize geriatric oral health, with interdisciplinary collaboration, cross-sector policies, and workforce education supporting older adults’ oral-systemic health.

Moving forward, it is essential to prioritize the following strategies:

<ul> <li>Addressing Historical Disparities: Rectify past inequities in access to information and dental care through targeted outreach and educational programs.</li> <li>Empowering Primary Healthcare: Strengthen the role of primary healthcare in promoting oral health through education, prevention, and patient-centered care.</li> <li>Fostering Collaborative Relationships: Encourage open communication and collaboration between healthcare professionals, elderly individuals, and their families to create personalized care plans.</li> <li>Promoting Self-Care and Healthy Attitudes: Empower elderly individuals to take control of their oral health through education and support, fostering a sense of responsibility and promoting healthy behaviors.</li> </ul>

What the study's evidence can and cannot establish

The analysis identifies relationships in interview narratives; it does not establish that primary care caused particular oral-health behaviors or outcomes.^[1]

Older adults' oral-health meanings in primary care: an interview and discourse analysis

Population	elderly people enrolled in a Family Health Unit^[1]
Sample size	14^[1]
Setting	Family Health Unit in Ribeirão Preto, State of São Paulo^[1]
Main outcome	Two interpretative repertoires identified through Discourse Analysis^[1]
Times cited	7^[1]

How later accounts place the study's childhood-care finding

A 2015 study reported that participants had not valued dental care in childhood and adolescence because it was unfamiliar to them. That account converges with the 2012 study’s childhood-information repertoire, while making unfamiliarity—not simply lack of assistance—explicit.^{[1] [2]}

Other cited work broadens the frame beyond the interview study: a 2015 paper argues that teeth’s social and aesthetic value belongs in public oral health, while a 2023 synthesis includes both adults and older people in Brazil. These sources address social value and a wider population, not the specific meaning-making process examined in the Family Health Unit.^{[2] [3]}

Questions left open by the interview findings

How do illness-focused biomedical practices affect the meaning-making role attributed to primary care?^{[1] [4]}

Sources

Atenção primária à saúde e a construção de sentidos para a saúde bucal: leitura construcionista social sobre discursos de idosos (FapUNIFESP (SciELO), 2012)
O valor social dos dentes e o acesso aos serviços odontológicos (Ciência & Saúde Coletiva, 2015)
Razões e consequências das perdas dentárias em adultos e idosos no Brasil: metassíntese qualitativa (Ciência & Saúde Coletiva, 2023)
Construcionismo social na atenção básica: uma revisão integrativa (Ciência & Saúde Coletiva, 2015)

About this Article -

Written with AI assistance from published research, and reviewed by the Mystum team. See our About page for more information.

This article is based on research published under:

DOI-LINK: 10.1590/s1413-81232012000500028, Alternate LINK

Title: Atenção Primária À Saúde E A Construção De Sentidos Para A Saúde Bucal: Leitura Construcionista Social Sobre Discursos De Idosos

Subject: Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

Journal: Ciência & Saúde Coletiva

Publisher: FapUNIFESP (SciELO)

Authors: Alexandre Favero Bulgarelli, Ione Carvalho Pinto, Carla Guanaes Lorenzi, Teresa Cristina Scatena Villa, Soraya Fernandes Mestriner, Rosalina Carvalho Da Silva

Published: 2012-05-01

Everything You Need To Know

Why is it important to consider the perspectives of the elderly in oral healthcare?

The article highlights the importance of integrating the perspectives of elderly individuals to revolutionize oral health. This is significant because it acknowledges the unique experiences, beliefs, and attitudes towards oral health shaped by their life experiences and access to healthcare. By understanding these perspectives, healthcare professionals can tailor interventions to meet their specific needs.

What research method was used to analyze the experiences of the elderly?

The research study utilized a method called discourse analysis. This method was used to examine the narratives of elderly individuals to understand how they perceive their oral health. By identifying interpretative repertoires, such as "Early Information and Dental Assistance" and "Primary Healthcare and Meaning-Making", researchers gained insights into the factors that influence the elderly's understanding of oral health.

How does primary healthcare impact the understanding of oral health for the elderly?

Primary healthcare plays a crucial role in shaping the elderly's understanding of oral health. The study revealed that access to primary healthcare services and the relationships formed with healthcare professionals significantly influence how elderly individuals perceive and manage their oral health. It provides an opportunity for education, prevention, and patient-centered care, empowering them to take control of their oral health.

What is the role of social constructionism in understanding oral health?

Social constructionism is a framework used to understand how our understanding of health, including oral health, is not fixed but is actively constructed through social interactions and cultural contexts. This means that the meanings we assign to oral health are shaped by our experiences, beliefs, and interactions with others. By embracing this framework, healthcare professionals can create more meaningful and effective interventions.

Where and when was the research study conducted, and what were its objectives?

The study involved interviews with 14 elderly individuals enrolled in a Family Health Unit in Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil, in 2010. These interviews aimed to understand their experiences, beliefs, and attitudes toward oral health and how their understanding has been shaped by their life experiences and access to healthcare. The participants' narratives provided valuable insights into the factors that influence oral health perceptions and the role of primary healthcare.