Assessing the prevalence and risk of tooth wear in Parkinson’s disease: A narrative review

Tooth wear is an increasingly common problem that affects the quality of life. Although previous research suggested that oral health is adversely affected in individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD) compared to healthy controls, tooth wear has not been extensively studied in this context. Particularly, there is a paucity of data on the prevalence and risk factors associated with tooth wear in PD patients. The aim of this study is to review the current literature on the prevalence and risk factors of tooth wear in PD patients and to propose hypotheses for future research on this topic. A literature search was conducted in PubMed. A total of 4 publications were identified: 1 case report and 3 questionnaire-based studies. These articles suggest that tooth wear is a more significant issue in PD patients than in healthy controls. In addition, potential associations between oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL), bruxism and temporomandibular disorder (TMD) pain on the one hand, and tooth wear on the other hand, were identified in PD patients. Due to the limited number of articles published on this topic, it is not possible to definitively conclude whether tooth wear is a common problem in PD patients. However, the following hypotheses could be formulated: 1) tooth wear is more prevalent in PD patients than in healthy controls; 2) risk factors for tooth wear observed in healthy individuals are more prevalent among PD patients; and 3) multiple risk factors for tooth wear likely coexist in people with PD, potentially influencing the prevalence and progression of tooth wear in this population.