Smoking Status and Risk Awareness of Heated Tobacco Product Use among General Dental Practitioners Belonging to the Aichi Dental Association, Japan.

The awareness of healthcare practitioners concerning heated tobacco product (HTP) use risks has been evaluated; however, few studies have investigated general dental practitioners' awareness regarding HTP-use risks. In this cross-sectional study, we investigated dentists' awareness of the risks of smoking, particularly HTP use. A self-administered questionnaire, including eight questions on conventional cigarette and HTP smoking/using status and both knowledge and awareness of HTP-use risks, was posted to 3883 dentists belonging to the Aichi Dental Association, Japan, in August 2019. Statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences; statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. We analyzed the data of 1317 dentists (participation rate, 41.6%). The study group included cigarette smokers (11.5%) and HTP users (8.5%), among whom 41.1% were dual users. HTP users were more likely than never smokers/users to correctly perceive HTP-use risks (p < 0.05). This study indicates that in Japan, the proportion of HTP users is higher than that of the general population. It is important to educate not only smokers/users but also never smokers/users on the risks of smoking and using HTPs. Smoking cessation, including ceasing HTP use, and aiming to quit smoking and HTP use among dentists would contribute to appropriate smoking cessation among patients.

Oral hypofunction and its association with frailty in community-dwelling older people.

AIM: This large epidemiological survey of older people examined oral hypofunction and the relationship between oral hypofunction and frailty. METHODS: Participants were community-dwelling adults aged 65-85 years in Japan. The oral function evaluation included seven items (oral hygiene, oral dryness, occlusal force, tongue-lip motor function, tongue pressure, masticatory function and swallowing function), and oral hypofunction was defined as having abnormalities in at least three of these items. The frailty status was classified into three categories (robust, pre-frail and frail) according to the total Kihon Checklist score. We analyzed 978 subjects with complete data. The relationship between oral function and frailty status was analyzed using multivariate multinomial logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: Approximately 60% of the older adults had oral hypofunction. The multivariate odds ratios (ORs) for a pre-frail or frail status were significantly higher for older people with reduced occlusal force, reduced tongue-lip motor function and deteriorated swallowing function than in those without deterioration of those items. Of the oral function items, swallowing function was most strongly associated with the frailty status, and the ORs (95% confidence interval [CI]) for deteriorated swallowing function in pre-frail and frail patients were 6.4 (3.9-10.8) and 10.2 (5.4-19.1), respectively. Those with oral hypofunction had significantly higher adjusted ORs for pre-frail (OR 1.4, 95% CI 1.1-2.0) and frail (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.2-3.5) statuses. CONCLUSION: Many community-dwelling older people have reduced oral function or oral hypofunction, which is significantly associated with frailty in older people. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2020; 20: 917-926.

[Effect of professional oral prophylaxis on the general health perceptions and lifestyles in workers of a worksite].

The present study was undertaken to look at the effect of professional oral prophylaxis on the general health perceptions and lifestyle in workers at a worksite in Aichi-ken. Dental check-ups and three kinds of questionnaires (SAS: The Social Adjustment Scale, MOS: The Medical Outcomes Study and the nutrition) were used in this investigation for three years from 1998. By means of the stratified sampling method, the participants were 265 workers separated into a case and a control group, who work for a pharmaceutical company (201 males, 64 females, average age 35.6 +/- 0.7 yr old). All participants gave their consent to the study. As in the case group, dental hygienists scaled their teeth and gave each of them appropriate advice about their oral health twice in a year. MOS, SAS, nutrition and oral health in the case and control groups were compared with the baseline, third and the final year. The results were as follows; 1) There was significant difference in energy, protein, fat, fish and meats sufficiency rates (p < 0.05) and a higher tendency towards consuming sugar, potassium (K), calcium (Ca), iron (Fe) and Fiber (p < 0.10) in the control group, but there were no significant differences in the other nutrients in the case and control groups. 2) There were significant differences in the number of decayed teeth in the case group, and in the number of filled teeth and decayed teeth in the control group. The gingival condition (CPI = 0) in the case group tended to be higher healthier than the control group, 3) In the MOS questionnaire, the case group was better or not worse in health perceptions scales, pain scales and mental health scales than the control group. 4) In the SAS questionnaire, the case group was better or not worse in the work and the social scales than the control group. It was concluded that oral health, social health and consciousness of health tended to improve by dental intervention.