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Functional tooth number and 15‐year mortality in a cohort of community‐residing older people
Author(s) -
Fukai Kakuhiro,
Takiguchi Toru,
Ando Yuichi,
Aoyama Hitoshi,
Miyakawa Youko,
Ito Gakuji,
Inoue Masakazu,
Sasaki Hidetada
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
geriatrics and gerontology international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.823
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1447-0594
pISSN - 1444-1586
DOI - 10.1111/j.1447-0594.2007.00422.x
Subject(s) - medicine , demography , age groups , cohort , cohort study , significant difference , tooth loss , dentistry , gerontology , oral health , sociology
Background: To study how dental status can become a predictor of overall mortality risk. Methods: Community residents ( n = 5730) over 40 years old in the Miyako Islands, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan were followed up for 15 years, 1987–2002. Functional tooth numbers were examined by dentists and overall mortalities of subjects with functional tooth numbers of <10 and ≥10 were compared in the age groups 40–49, 50–59, 60–69, 70–79 and 80 years or more in both males and females. Results: Groups of 80 years or more showed a significantly higher rate of overall mortality in subjects with functional tooth numbers of less than 10 than 10 or more, and there was no significant difference in the other age groups. Conclusion: The present study suggests that systemic attention to dental status should be recommended in older males.