Landscape of gerodontology education in Indian dental schools: a scoping review

Abstract

India faces rapid demographic ageing, with its ≥60 population projected to rise form 153 million to 340 million by mid centuary, accompanied by high oral disease burden and access barriers. Despite producing 25,000-30,000 BDS graduate yearly across 300+ dental colleges, undergraduate curricula’s gerodontology representation remains unclear. This JBI/PRISMA guided scoping review mapped gerodontology curriculum scope within Indian BDS programme using PCC framework.

Comprehensive search (Pubmed, Scopus, Embase, Web of Science, Shodhganga) yielded 22 studies following dual screening/extraction with cross sectional survey dominance. Six themes emerged: (1) ageing as curriculum driver; (2) absent standalone subject, fragmented embedding; (3) didactic dominance, limited clinical/IPE; (4) positive attitudes/low confidence; (5) faculty/system barriers; (6) unimplemented IPE frameworks.

Gerodontology lacks explicit competencies/assessments; dentistry-centric despite advocated multidisciplinary models (Table 3). Key gaps span curricula, pedagogy, geographical representation (Table 4). Descriptive evidence limits implementation insights.

Fragmented gerodontology education misaligns BDS training with India’s increasing ageing burden. Positive student attitude contrast persistent confidence gaps, reflecting curricular design failures rather than learner deficiencies. Evidence supports urgent reform in terms of explicit compitencies, longitudinal integration, IPE pedagogies, faculty development, DCI regulatory standards. This first national synthesis guided curriculum/policy action to prepare graduates for oral healthcare standards.

Keyword: - Geriatric dentistry, dental education, Interprofessional education, Scoping review, India