Oral motor function and masticatory performance in the community-dwelling elderly

This study was performed to ascertain the relationships between oral motor functions, such as those of the tongue and lips, and age in the community-dwelling elderly, as well as to investigate the effects of these factors on masticatory performance. The subjects were 268 healthy elderly Japanese living in Kyoto. They were divided into four age groups and further classified into the following two groups by the presence or absence of posterior occlusal support: Eichner A or B1-B3 (group A), and Eichner B4 or C (group B). They were wearing removable or fixed dentures if they had missing teeth. Oral function evaluation items included (1) masticatory performance and (2) oral motor skills. Significant differences were noted among the age groups in tongue pressure within group A (P < 0.01) and group B (P < 0.05), and in the number of repetitions of the syllables /ta/ and /ka/ in group B (/ta/: P < 0.05, /ka/; P < 0.01). The number of natural teeth (β = 0.463, P < 0.001) in group A and tongue pressure (β = 0.436, P < 0.001) in group B were the only predictors of masticatory performance when the data were analyzed by multiple regression analysis. The tongue may compensate for the missing teeth in masticatory performance of those elderly who have lost their natural teeth. The results of this study highlight the importance of tongue function in masticatory performance.