Abuse of older people (AOP) is a global public health problem with serious consequences for older adults. To protect them, several countries have introduced mandatory reporting by healthcare professionals. Dental care professionals frequently interact with older adults and, according to the literature, have specific knowledge enabling them to recognize signs of AOP. However, to what extent they apply this knowledge in clinical practice is not well studied. This scoping review mapped how dental care professionals identify and respond to AOP. Eight studies were included in the review following a systematic search in five databases. The findings were organized into thematic categories and showed that dental care professionals used various signs to identify AOP. However, many did not act on these observations, due to limited knowledge, training, and support systems. The included studies focused primarily on dentists, emphasizing the need for updated research involving a broader range of dental care professionals.
Todorov et al. (Wed,) studied this question.