Glossary

Dental branch that deals with the prevention and treatment of oral health in patients with physical, sensory, intellectual disabilities or complex pathologies that make access to traditional dental care difficult. Includes: patients with intellectual disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, cerebral palsy, genetic syndromes, neurological diseases, psychiatric disorders.

Specific problems: poor oral hygiene, malocclusions, bruxism, drugs that alter oral health, collaboration difficulties. Therapeutic approaches: gradual desensitization, facilitated communication, behavioral aids, conscious sedation or general anesthesia for complex interventions. In Italy, public projects: DAMA (Disabled Advanced Medical Assistance) and TOBIA provide dental care in hospital settings. Specialized private centers offer: accessible environments, trained staff, adapted equipment, personalized protocols. Special dentistry requires: advanced clinical skills, relational sensitivity, collaboration with caregivers, coordination with health teams. Prevention is a priority to avoid invasive interventions.

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Health discipline that deals with the prevention, assessment and treatment of communication, language, voice, swallowing and oral function disorders. The speech therapist intervenes on: language disorders (aphasia, developmental delays), articulation (dysarthria, dyslalia), fluency (stuttering), voice (dysphonia), swallowing (dysphagia), communication (pragmatic disorders).

Areas of intervention: developmental age (language delays, learning disorders), adults (post-stroke aphasia, professional dysphonia), elderly (dysphagia, dementia), complex disabilities (autism, cerebral palsy, genetic syndromes). Techniques: articulatory exercises, language stimulation, myofunctional therapy, augmentative alternative communication (AAC), family counseling. For people with disabilities, speech therapy is essential to: develop functional communication, manage dysphagia (risk of aspiration pneumonia), improve quality of life. Regulated health profession (DM 742/1994) with three-year degree. The speech therapist works in a multidisciplinary team with neurologists, physiatrists, child neuropsychiatrists.

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