Association between Activities of Daily Living and Oral Function in Elderly People Using Welfare Facilities

Abstract

 There have been a few reports on the association between activities of daily living (ADL) and oral function. However, there is currently no consensus regarding the association between the number of teeth, masticatory ability, or oral diadochokinesis (ODK) and ADL. In addition, there are some reports from a single facility, but not from multiple facilities. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between the oral function and ADL among elderly at multiple facilities. The participants were 61 elderly people using 6 welfare facilities in the northern part of Okayama Prefecture. We investigated the age, sex, degree of care required, basic illness, ADL, consumed food, number of teeth present, use of dentures, tongue pressure, and ODK. The consumed food were classified into two categories: regular and non-regular. ODK, each of /pa/, /ta/, and /ka/, was classified into two groups: “less than 4.0 times/second” and “over 4.0 times/second”. We categorized ADL into three groups: rank J as “independent group”, rank A as “semi-bedridden group”, and ranks B and C as “bedridden group”. The association between ADL and age was analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test, and that between ADL and other factors was analyzed using Fisher’s exact test. The severity of ADL was significantly correlated with the degree of care required, diabetes, osteoarthritis, food substances, and ODK /pa/ and /ka/. There was a significant correlation of food substances with ODK /pa/, /ta/, and /ka/ sounds. In conclusion, a decrease in ODK may lead to a worsening nutritional status through alteration of food substances and may be related to the severity of ADL.