Nutritional and oral health status in Spanish older than 64

Objective: The aim of this survey was to investigate nutritional status and oral health among Spanish adults aged 65 and over and different biological and social factors. Design: cross-sectional oral health survey in an elderly population. The sample is representative of Spanish adults aged 65 and over. Subjects: 3,460 adults (3,071 non-institutionalized and 389 institutionalized; 1,433 men and 1,996 women) aged 65 and older (mean age 72 (± 6.4)). Setting: Randomly selected primary care clinics and institutions. Methods: The oral health survey included a questionnaire and an oral examination conducted by calibrated dentists. A structured interview on socio-economic status, oral health habits, evaluation of the nutritional status by The Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) and a clinical evaluation of oral and dental health (WHO 1997), was performed. Results: The MNA classified 4% of the subjects as malnourished, 34% at risk of under nutrition and 62% as well nourished. 31% of the population was edentulous. Step-wise multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that nutritional status was directly correlated with gender, age, lower income, illiteracy, institutionalization and edentulousness. Conclusion: Oral health can affect in some way the nutritional status of elderly people.