Highlights
- •This is the first study to include subjective and objective evaluations of oral health in a population of centenarians.
- •There was a higher proportion of 6-n-propylthiouracil supertasters among non-demented centenarians.
- •We didn't find significant correlations between self-reported or objective oral health variables and diagnosis of dementia.
- •There was a trend towards a higher level of antioxidant capacity in the saliva of non-demented centenarians.
Abstract
The number of centenarians is rapidly increasing worldwide and so are the studies
on this segment of the population. A general consensus in the literature is that healthy
longevity is an outcome of multiple factors, but the interrelationship between good
oral health and healthy aging remains not fully understood. As part of the “CaT: Centenari
a Trieste” study, a population-based cohort study set in Trieste, Italy, we report
here the results of subjective self-reported oral health parameters and objective
clinical and biological oral variables and their association with cognitive impairment
in 25 centenarians enrolled in the study from September 2017 to May 2019. Oral health-related
variables were recorded by means of a self-evaluation questionnaire and a comprehensive
oral examination of teeth, prostheses and mucosae conducted by a trained dentist.
In addition, 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP) taste perception and salivary oxidative stress markers, specifically
the Total Oxidative Status and Ferric Reducing Ability of Saliva, were measured. Finally,
the oral data obtained were compared with the presence or absence of dementia in the
enrolled subjects. The centenarians included in our study were generally satisfied
with their oral health. Among the causes of discomfort, the most prevalent were difficulties
in chewing and biting, with few subjects describing a correlation between their oral
health and psycho-social issues. We evaluated possible relations of clinical and biological
variables to the likelihood of being demented and did not find significant associations.
We found a higher though not statistically significant mean salivary flow and antioxidant
capacity of saliva in non-demented subjects. When evaluating the PROP taste perception
profile, we found a higher proportion of supertasters compared with previous studies
and different taste perception profiles according to dementia. Despite the relatively
small number of participants, we believe that our study contributes to a better understanding
of the clinical and biological profile of the oral cavity in subjects aged over 100
years, encouraging the inclusion of a comprehensive evaluation of the oral cavity
in centenarian studies performed worldwide.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: December 22, 2020
Accepted:
December 15,
2020
Received in revised form:
November 19,
2020
Received:
June 2,
2020
Identification
Copyright
© 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
