Sir, I recently had the pleasure of treating a blind patient with periodontal disease in general practice. Without the use of the gentleman's sight, it was necessary for me to adapt my usual tooth-brushing and oral hygiene instruction to convey the disease process and teach my patient how to effectively remove plaque from his teeth. Since his periodontal treatment, I have changed the way I practise.
I believe effective oral hygiene instruction to any patient should appeal to all five senses:
SIGHT – The use of disclosing tablets, demonstration on teeth models, flip charts
FEEL – Let the patient feel how a toothbrush and interdental brush is meant to engage with the teeth physically, particularly at the gingival margin and in-between the teeth
SOUND – The clinician must listen to the patient, and vice versa. Find out what aspects of oral hygiene they are having difficulty with and support them as necessary
TASTE – Let them taste what a clean mouth and fresh breath tastes like; over time they often report this change
SMELL – We all know perio-breath and would rather have less of that around!
I hope other clinicians find this useful.
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Midwood, I. Appealing to five senses. Br Dent J 222, 831 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.bdj.2017.479
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.bdj.2017.479