Poor oral status at stroke onset negatively affects activities of daily living at discharge: A propensity-score analysis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Poor oral status during stroke recovery can cause malnutrition, which can markedly affect activities of daily living and prevent patients from being discharged home. Therefore, prompt evaluation and treatment of oral disorders immediately after stroke is essential. This study aimed to examine the impact of poor oral status on the post-stroke recovery of independence in activities of daily living and home discharge.

METHODS

This single-center retrospective observational study included 137 patients with acute stroke, divided into two groups based on their Oral Assessment Guide (OAG) scores: the normal OAG group (score = 8) and the impaired OAG group (scores ≥9). Propensity-score matching was performed to minimize confounding variables. The χ2 test and odds ratios were used to compare the percentage of independence and home discharges between the two groups.

RESULTS

The normal and impaired OAG groups exhibited no difference in neurological severity or nutritional intake after matching. The percentage of patients achieving independence in activities of daily living in the normal OAG group (86.8 %) was significantly higher than that in the impaired OAG group (65.8 %) (p = 0.03, odds ratio [OR] 0.29, 95 % confidence interval [CI] 0.09-0.92). Conversely, no significant difference in the percentage of patients discharged home was found (p = 0.15, OR 0.49, 95%CI 0.19-1.29).

CONCLUSIONS

This study found that poor oral status after stroke onset was an independent factor affecting independence in activities of daily living at discharge, irrespective of neurological severity and dietary intake.