Association between masticatory function, frailty, and functional disability: an observational study

Background: Increase in functional disability in aging societies is an international medical and public health issue. Masticatory function may be a potential risk factor for functional disability, but the role of frailty in the association has not been clarified. Methods: Forty thousand five hundred sixty-two community-dwelling older adults aged 65 years and over who were insured by public health insurance as of April 2018 were followed up for a median of 3.0 years. Masticatory function was categorized as good, moderate, or poor based on a self-reported questionnaire. The development of functional disability was defined as a new certification of the need for long-term care. A Cox proportional hazards model was used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results: During the follow-up period, 1,397 individuals experienced functional disability. After adjusting for age, sex, comorbidities, medical history, and lifestyle behaviors, the HR for incident functional disability was significantly higher in the moderate and poor groups compared to the good group (moderate, HR 1.21 [95% CI, 1.07–1.37]; poor, HR 1.64 [95% CI, 1.03–2.62]). However, after additional adjustment for frailty-related factors—namely, underweight, regular exercise, and gait speed—the association was attenuated in both the moderate group (HR 1.06 [95% CI, 0.94–1.21]) and the poor group (HR 1.51 [95% CI, 0.94–2.41]). Conclusions: Masticatory dysfunction was significantly associated with incident functional disability in a community-dwelling older Japanese population. Our findings suggest that masticatory dysfunction may be a surrogate of frailty rather than a direct cause of functional disability.