Subjective assessment of sensory function and oral function decline in older adults.

Sensory decline in older adults significantly affects quality of life and contributes to cognitive decline, depression, falls, and injuries. Although several studies exist in this area, most were focused on individual senses, with few being conducted on comprehensive assessments of all five senses....

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Tetsuo Ichikawa, Tomoya Koda, Mio Kitamura, Takahiro Kishimoto, Takashi Matsuda, Takaharu Goto, Masayuki Domichi, Akiko Suganuma, Shinji Fujiwara, Yasuhiko Shirayama, Kazuhiko Kotani, Naoki Sakane
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2025-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0326788
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1839634443089739776
author Tetsuo Ichikawa
Tomoya Koda
Mio Kitamura
Takahiro Kishimoto
Takashi Matsuda
Takaharu Goto
Masayuki Domichi
Akiko Suganuma
Shinji Fujiwara
Yasuhiko Shirayama
Kazuhiko Kotani
Naoki Sakane
author_facet Tetsuo Ichikawa
Tomoya Koda
Mio Kitamura
Takahiro Kishimoto
Takashi Matsuda
Takaharu Goto
Masayuki Domichi
Akiko Suganuma
Shinji Fujiwara
Yasuhiko Shirayama
Kazuhiko Kotani
Naoki Sakane
author_sort Tetsuo Ichikawa
collection DOAJ
description Sensory decline in older adults significantly affects quality of life and contributes to cognitive decline, depression, falls, and injuries. Although several studies exist in this area, most were focused on individual senses, with few being conducted on comprehensive assessments of all five senses. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between subjective sensory assessment and oral function, to developing health strategies. This study was conducted as part of the Mima-SONGS Study for examining relationships between oral, cognitive, and physical functions, social factors, nutrition, and health, in older adults living in a mountainous region of Japan. The cohort included 62 participants (40 women and 22 men; mean age: 80.8 yrs.) as of December 2023. Participants completed a questionnaire assessing sensory perception and eating enjoyment rated on a four-point scale. Oral health was evaluated based on the conditions of remaining teeth, tongue coating, oral dryness, occlusal force, oral diadochokinesis, and repetitive salivary swallow test. Sensory assessments indicated minimal overall issues, with auditory problems scoring the highest and taste/tactile issues scoring the lowest. Males scored higher in hearing and maximum occlusal force. Eating enjoyment was generally high and negatively correlated with olfactory and taste problems. Subjective sensory issues were less strongly associated with oral function and age. Most older adults were not subjectively aware of sensory problems, especially olfaction, taste, and tactile problems. Subjective sensory problems showed a moderate but meaningful association with oral health conditions and age. The findings might be valuable data developing future support measures.
format Article
id doaj-art-c8dc93b8ab25430fa7c746382dd4f23c
institution Matheson Library
issn 1932-6203
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher Public Library of Science (PLoS)
record_format Article
series PLoS ONE
spelling doaj-art-c8dc93b8ab25430fa7c746382dd4f23c2025-07-10T05:31:42ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032025-01-01206e032678810.1371/journal.pone.0326788Subjective assessment of sensory function and oral function decline in older adults.Tetsuo IchikawaTomoya KodaMio KitamuraTakahiro KishimotoTakashi MatsudaTakaharu GotoMasayuki DomichiAkiko SuganumaShinji FujiwaraYasuhiko ShirayamaKazuhiko KotaniNaoki SakaneSensory decline in older adults significantly affects quality of life and contributes to cognitive decline, depression, falls, and injuries. Although several studies exist in this area, most were focused on individual senses, with few being conducted on comprehensive assessments of all five senses. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between subjective sensory assessment and oral function, to developing health strategies. This study was conducted as part of the Mima-SONGS Study for examining relationships between oral, cognitive, and physical functions, social factors, nutrition, and health, in older adults living in a mountainous region of Japan. The cohort included 62 participants (40 women and 22 men; mean age: 80.8 yrs.) as of December 2023. Participants completed a questionnaire assessing sensory perception and eating enjoyment rated on a four-point scale. Oral health was evaluated based on the conditions of remaining teeth, tongue coating, oral dryness, occlusal force, oral diadochokinesis, and repetitive salivary swallow test. Sensory assessments indicated minimal overall issues, with auditory problems scoring the highest and taste/tactile issues scoring the lowest. Males scored higher in hearing and maximum occlusal force. Eating enjoyment was generally high and negatively correlated with olfactory and taste problems. Subjective sensory issues were less strongly associated with oral function and age. Most older adults were not subjectively aware of sensory problems, especially olfaction, taste, and tactile problems. Subjective sensory problems showed a moderate but meaningful association with oral health conditions and age. The findings might be valuable data developing future support measures.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0326788
spellingShingle Tetsuo Ichikawa
Tomoya Koda
Mio Kitamura
Takahiro Kishimoto
Takashi Matsuda
Takaharu Goto
Masayuki Domichi
Akiko Suganuma
Shinji Fujiwara
Yasuhiko Shirayama
Kazuhiko Kotani
Naoki Sakane
Subjective assessment of sensory function and oral function decline in older adults.
PLoS ONE
title Subjective assessment of sensory function and oral function decline in older adults.
title_full Subjective assessment of sensory function and oral function decline in older adults.
title_fullStr Subjective assessment of sensory function and oral function decline in older adults.
title_full_unstemmed Subjective assessment of sensory function and oral function decline in older adults.
title_short Subjective assessment of sensory function and oral function decline in older adults.
title_sort subjective assessment of sensory function and oral function decline in older adults
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0326788
work_keys_str_mv AT tetsuoichikawa subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT tomoyakoda subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT miokitamura subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT takahirokishimoto subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT takashimatsuda subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT takaharugoto subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT masayukidomichi subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT akikosuganuma subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT shinjifujiwara subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT yasuhikoshirayama subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT kazuhikokotani subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults
AT naokisakane subjectiveassessmentofsensoryfunctionandoralfunctiondeclineinolderadults