Effect of Oral Health Education Using a Mobile App (OHEMA) on the Oral Health and Swallowing-Related Quality of Life in Community-Based Integrated Care of the Elderly: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Ji-Yun Ki,Kyung-Sook Cho,Jung-Eun Park,Ja-Won Cho,Jong-Hwa Jang,Se-Rim Jo

doi:10.3390/ijerph182111679

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of oral health education using a mobile app (OHEMA) on the oral health and swallowing-related quality of life (SWAL-QoL) of the elderly population in a community-based integrated care project (CICP). Forty elderly individuals in the CICP were randomized into intervention and control groups. OHEMA provided information on customized oral health care management, oral exercises, and intraoral and extraoral massage methods for 50 min/session, once a week, for 6 weeks. Pre- and post-intervention surveys assessed the unstimulated salivary flow rate, subjective oral dryness, tongue pressure, and SWAL-QoL, which were analyzed using ANCOVA and repeated measures ANOVA. In the intervention group, tongue pressure increased significantly from pre- (17.75) to post-intervention (27.24) (p < 0.001), and subjective oral dryness decreased from pre- (30.75) to post-intervention (18.50). The unstimulated salivary flow rate had a higher mean score in the intervention group (7.19) than in the control group (5.04) (p < 0.001). The SWAL-QoL significantly improved from pre- (152.10) to post-intervention (171.50) in the intervention group (p < 0.001) but did not change significantly in the control group (p > 0.05). OHEMA appears to be a useful tool for oral health education for the elderly as it improved the SWAL-QoL, with increased tongue pressure and reduced oral dryness.

Highlights

The scope of the community-based integrated care project (CICP) includes anyone that requires care in South Korea, but the largest proportion of care is directed to elderly people who have been discharged from a hospital, most of whom are reported to have a systemic disease and a low level of oral health [3]
The ADL and IADL scores of the participants showed a mild level of disability in both the intervention (1.71 and 12.14, respectively) and control (0 and 10.67, respectively) groups, but the level did not pose a constraint to participation in oral health education or oral health care performance
This study analyzed the impact of oral health education using a mobile app (OHEMA) application for 6 weeks on the oral health and SWAL-QoL of the selected CICP elderly population, which was randomized between intervention and control groups

Summary

Introduction

Pre- and post-intervention surveys assessed the unstimulated salivary flow rate, subjective oral dryness, tongue pressure, and SWAL-QoL, which were analyzed using. South Korea is predicted to become a super-aged society by 2025 [1], and the national health care cost burden is rapidly increasing, in relation to health issues associated with the elderly population. This has highlighted the care of the elderly as a political issue, and a national-level community-based integrated care project (CICP) has been in operation since 2019 [2].

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion