Abstract
Aim: Dietary support is important for institutionalized older adults. However, few studies have examined the relationship between daily meals and patient-reported outcomes in institutionalized older adults. We cross-sectionally evaluated the association between diet and dysphagia-related symptoms and oral health-related quality of life (QOL) among elderly people admitted to a fee-paying nursing home with longterm care.
Methods: A questionnaire survey was conducted in 2016 among 102 elderly people admitted to a feepaying nursing home with long-term care (33 men and 69 women) aged 60 years or older in Kitakyushu City. Information on nutritional intake and health status was collected from the staff of the nursing homes. Subjects who did not need any adjustment to their diet were classified as the no-adjustment group, those who were eating rice and soft dishes were classified as the adjustment-required group 1, and those who needed further adjustment to their diet as adjustment-required group 2. The frequency of dysphagiarelated symptoms in the past week was assessed by self-rating on a 5-point scale. QOL was assessed using the General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI) as an oral health-related QOL scale. The odds ratio (OR) of a GOHAI score below the national norm (＜53.1) was calculated across the dietary groups by logistic regression analysis, adjusting for sex, age, and other potential confounding factors. The chi-squared test was used to analyze the symptoms and dietary groups.
Results: Overall, 73% of the subjects did not require dietary adjustment and 21% and 7% were classified into adjustment-required group 1 and 2, respectively. Of the subjects, 44% reported aGOHAI score below the national norm. There was no significant association between diet and GOHAI score. Compared to the no-adjustment group, the groups who required adjustment to their diet had a lower rate of answering “rarely or not at all” for drooling.
Conclusion: Elderly people admitted to a fee-paying nursing home with long-term care who required dietary adjustment were more likely to have subjective symptoms of drooling. There was no significant association between diet and oral-health-related QOL.
