Oral Care Aids in Occupational Therapy

Oral care is part of daily living, but it is often treated like a simple hygiene task. For clients with disability, age-related changes, sensory differences or support needs, brushing may need the same functional thinking as other ADLs.

Useful oral-care aids should match the actual routine, environment and support team.

Assess the routine first

Before choosing an oral-care aid, identify where the current routine is failing:

• Starting the task
• Holding or moving the brush
• Tolerating mouth contact, vibration, taste or foam
• Completing the routine for long enough
• Cleaning, charging or replacing parts
• Carer consistency between different support workers

Types of support to compare

Depending on the person, an OT may consider positioning changes, environmental setup, visual routines, adapted handles, electric toothbrushes, carer prompts, or mouthpiece-style brushing products.

Arco Brush may be one option where the goal is a simpler supported brushing routine with less reliance on traditional brush movements.

Documentation and product information

For product summary, routine prompts and documentation areas, see the OT information page and Practitioner Pack.