Department of Prosthodontics, Gerodontology and Oral Rehabilitation, Osaka University Graduate School of Dentistry, Suita 565-0871, Japan.
Department of Clinical Thanatology and Geriatric Behavioral Science, Osaka University Graduate School of Human Sciences, Suita 565-0871, Japan.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Dec 15;18(24):13199. doi: 10.3390/ijerph182413199.
Grip strength and walking speed are considered to be important indicators of physical frailty. However, no study has contemporaneously examined any association of multiple oral functions with grip strength and walking speed. The purpose of this study was to examine which oral functions are associated with muscle strength (grip strength), physical performance (walking speed) or both. The study participants were 511 community-dwelling people (254 men and 257 women) aged 77-81 years old. Six oral functions-oral wetness, occlusal force, tongue-lip motor function, tongue pressure, masticatory performance and swallowing function-were measured. Grip strength and walking speed were also measured. A partial correlation analysis, adjusted for gender, showed that occlusal force, tongue-lip motor function, masticatory performance and swallowing function were significantly associated with both grip strength and walking speed. In addition, tongue pressure was significantly associated with grip strength. A general linear model showed that tongue pressure and occlusal force were significantly associated with grip strength. Swallowing function and tongue-lip motor function were significantly associated with walking speed. It is suggested that there are different oral function measures for muscle strength and physical performance, and these oral function measures could be a useful proxy for physical frailty.
握力和步行速度被认为是身体虚弱的重要指标。然而，尚无研究同时检查多种口腔功能与握力和步行速度的任何关联。本研究的目的是检查哪些口腔功能与肌肉力量（握力）、身体机能（步行速度）或两者都有关。研究参与者为 511 名居住在社区的 77-81 岁人群（254 名男性和 257 名女性）。测量了 6 种口腔功能 - 口腔湿润度、咬合力量、唇舌运动功能、舌压、咀嚼性能和吞咽功能。还测量了握力和步行速度。经过性别调整的部分相关分析显示，咬合力量、唇舌运动功能、咀嚼性能和吞咽功能与握力和步行速度均显著相关。此外，舌压与握力显著相关。一般线性模型显示，舌压和咬合力量与握力显著相关。吞咽功能和唇舌运动功能与步行速度显著相关。因此，可能存在针对肌肉力量和身体机能的不同口腔功能测量方法，这些口腔功能测量方法可能是身体虚弱的有用指标。
