Physical ability and comorbidity and oral health among home-dwelling older people in the Finnish population.

AIM: To examine how physical ability and comorbidity associate with oral health. METHODS AND RESULTS: The study population comprised 161 individuals belonging to the Oral Health GeMS study. Outcome variables were the number of teeth with dental caries and deepened periodontal pockets and self-perceived oral health (pain/discomfort in mouth). Physical ability was determined by measuring limitations in daily activities (activities of daily living [ADL] and instrumental activities of daily life [IADL]) and the number of comorbidities with Functional Comorbidity Index (FCI). Poisson's multivariate regression model was used to estimate prevalence rate ratio (PRR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI). The physical ability or number of comorbidities did not associate consistently with oral diseases, but ADL, IADL and FCI associated all with self-perceived oral discomfort (PRR: 1.74, CI: 1.01-3.03; PRR: 1.20, CI: 1.06-1.35; PRR: 1.20, CI: 1.05-1.36, respectively). Furthermore, IADL associated also with poor self-perceived oral health (PRR: 1.27, CI: 1.03-1.57). CONCLUSION: Older people with impaired physical ability and comorbidities are more likely to have oral discomfort and have poorer self-perceived oral health.