Alzheimer's disease, oral function and nutritional status

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To study differences in nutritional, dental status and oral function between institutionalised patients with Alzheimer's disease and cognitively healthy elderly people living in the community. DESIGN: Comparison was made between two groups. Alzheimer's disease sufferers and healthy controls, using established criteria for anthropometric, mental and dental state. SETTING: An institution and residential area in Stockholm, Sweden. SUBJECTS: Forty patients with Alzheimer's disease living in a nursing home and 40 age- and gender-matched control subjects living independently. INTERVENTION: Dental status and anthropometric variables. RESULTS: Overnutrition was less frequent among the demented than the controls and more demented were undernourished. Dental status was similar in the two groups with few edentulous subjects but only 2 of 7 edentulous subjects with Alzheimer's disease wore dentures. Having natural teeth and many functional oral zones is important for food consistency choice, but not for nutritional status. In the Alzheimer group, the stage of dementia has a strong association to the ability to eat unaided and an association with dental status. CONCLUSION: There are differences in nutritional status between Alzheimer's patients in institutions and cognitively healthy elderly living at home. The choice of food consistency is correlated to dental status but nutritional status is not shown to be influenced by dental status. However, the ability to eat unaided is strongly correlated to cognitive status.