Associations between oral health status and short-term functional outcomes in hospitalized patients aged over 65 years with acute ischemic stroke: a retrospective observational study.

Objective: To assess the associations between oral health status and short-term functional outcomes in hospitalized patients aged over 65 years with acute ischemic stroke.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective observational analysis included older adult patients (age, ≥ 65 years) admitted for acute ischemic stroke. The oral health status at admission was evaluated using the Oral Health Assessment Tool (OHAT). Patients were categorized into the normal oral health (OHAT score, 0-2) or poor oral health (OHAT score, ≥ 3) group. Stroke severity, Functional Oral Intake Scale (FOIS), and medical history were compared. Multivariate analysis was used to determine the association between the OHAT score and modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score at discharge, FOIS score at discharge, and length of hospital stay.

Results: The study comprised 129 patients (mean age: 78.8 ± 7.7 years). The poor oral health group (n = 22) had a higher stroke severity and lower FOIS scores than the normal oral health group (n = 107). The poor oral health group exhibited significantly higher rates of moderate to severe disability at discharge (odds ratio = 9.18, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.74-48.30, P = 0.009), lower FOIS scores at discharge (β = -0.96, 95% CI: -1.71 to -0.20, P = 0.014), and longer hospital stays (β = 10.70, 95% CI: 0.80-20.61, P = 0.034) than the other group.

Conclusion: In older patients with acute ischemic stroke, poor oral health status at admission was associated with worse short-term functional outcomes, including increased disability, dysphagia, and longer hospital stay.

Clinical Relevance: Assessing and addressing the oral health status of this population can potentially improve short-term functional outcomes and enhance comprehensive stroke care.