Comparison of oral health, nutrition and swallowing function in geriatric individuals with and without sarcopenia

This study was conducted to compare the oral health, nutrition and swallowing functions of geriatric individuals with and without sarcopenia. A total of 28 sarcopenic and 37 non-sarcopenic individuals with a Standardized Mini Mental State Test score of 24 and above, who were over 65 years old, had no neurological disease and degenerative neuromuscular disease, no history of head and neck surgery and/or radiotherapy were included in the study. Individuals personal information, cognitive status, comorbid diseases, anthropometric measurements, muscle strength measurements were evaluated. Oral health was evaluated with the Oral Health Impact Profile, nutritional status with the Mini Nutritional Assessment, and swallowing function with the EAT-10, and their responses to these tests were recorded.As a result of the study; It was found that the oral health of the sarcopenic individuals deteriorated, the nutritional status deteriorated and the swallowing function decreased compared to the non-sarcopenic individuals (p<0.05). As a result; Oral health, nutritional status and swallowing function were worsened in sarcopenic individuals. Considering these changes that occur with sarcopenia, we think that it is important to evaluate oral health, nutritional status and swallowing functions as well as muscle mass and strength in individuals with sarcopenia.Keywords: Aging, Nutrition, Oral health, Sarcopenia, Swallowing