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Aim: Nurses' skills and confidence in providing oral care to patients play important roles in healthcare. Studies have proved that peer‐to‐peer learning and assessment can help improve nurses' skills and confidence. However, no study has investigated it using an objective assessment checklist. This study investigated an oral hygiene practice training program for nursing students. It focused on their oral healthcare skills, confidence, and perspectives regarding implementing an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE). Methods: A pre‐ and post‐survey of 97 nursing students from a nursing school in Japan was conducted as a peer‐to‐peer oral health education training program that included an assessment and performance checklist. Results: Confidence in performing and assessing oral care significantly improved after attending the program. Furthermore, the changes were significantly greater in the developed program than in the training program without the checklist. The mean total assessment scores (0–25) of the first, second, third, and fourth participants in the four‐student groups were 22.1, 23.4, 23.9, and 24.1, respectively. The mean scores of the second, third, and fourth participant groups were significantly higher than that of the first participant group (p <.01). Fifty‐two positive and 58 negative comments were received regarding the implementation of the program with professional assessments and the checklist. The most common positive comment mentioned that the evaluation by professionals improved oral care learning and skills. Conclusions: This study developed a program to improve nursing students' confidence and oral care delivery skill building in an OSCE‐style delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study sought to investigate the current status and faculty members' perceptions of oral care education in Bachelor of Nursing curriculums in Japan. Method: Data were gathered through a questionnaire survey of 196 participants, who were faculty members in charge of oral care education in the basic, adult, gerontological, and home nursing fields, from 295 nursing schools that offered Bachelor degrees in nursing across Japan. Results: The quantitative data showed that 38.5% of the participants worked for less than 5 years as oral care educators, only 15.5% taught oral care in perioperative wards, only 62.2% used an oral care training simulator, and less than 30% believed that training in the prevention of oral diseases should be enhanced. From the descriptive responses, this study identified such problems as the inability of students to perform student‐on‐student and patient‐based oral care training owing to the risk of SARS‐CoV‐2 transmission, and the lack of teaching materials, time, and human resources, and cooperation with other nursing fields and health professionals. Conclusions: This study revealed several problems in oral care education in the Bachelor of Nursing curriculums in Japan. To tackle these challenges, this study suggests the development of an interdisciplinary course that unifies oral care education in nursing fields, in order to promote collaborative oral care education and to improve nursing students' knowledge and skills of oral care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: The purpose of this study was to construct a model for oral assessment using deep learning image recognition technology and to verify its accuracy. Background: The effects of oral care on older people are significant, and the Oral Assessment Guide has been used internationally as an effective oral assessment tool in clinical practice. However, additional training, education, development of user manuals and continuous support from a dental hygienist are needed to improve the inter‐rater reliability of the Oral Assessment Guide. Design: A retrospective observational study. Methods: A total of 3,201 oral images of 114 older people aged >65 years were collected from five dental‐related facilities. These images were divided into six categories (lips, tongue, saliva, mucosa, gingiva, and teeth or dentures) that were evaluated by images, out of the total eight items that comprise components of the Oral Assessment Guide. Each item was classified into a rating of 1, 2 or 3. A convolutional neural network, which is a deep learning method used for image recognition, was used to construct the image recognition model. The study methods comply with the STROBE checklist. Results: We constructed models with a classification accuracy of 98.8% for lips, 94.3% for tongue, 92.8% for saliva, 78.6% for mucous membranes, 93.0% for gingiva and 93.6% for teeth or dentures. Conclusions: Highly accurate diagnostic imaging models using convolutional neural networks were constructed for six items of the Oral Assessment Guide and validated. In particular, for the five items of lips, tongue, saliva, gingiva, and teeth or dentures, models with a high accuracy of over 90% were obtained. Relevance to Clinical Practice: The model built in this study has the potential to contribute to obtain reproducibility and reliability of the ratings, to shorten the time for assessment, to collaborate with dental professionals and to be used as an educational tool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In aging society like Japan, maintaining the quality of life (QOL) is an important objective. The oral cavity has various significant functions that contribute to the QOL. Elderly people are susceptible to the swallowing disorders owing to various factors associated with advancing age. In such cases, mealtime assistance can provide elderly persons appropriate eating situations. Thus, mealtime assistance skills are essential for students in nursing and caregiver education. Recently, simulation education has attracted attention as an effective educational process for nursing and caregiver students before their clinical practice in a hospital or care house. In this educational process, a patient model that mimics specific symptoms called the simulation model, is used to learn the symptoms and its care process in the same clinical environment as actual. We have attempted to develop several oral care simulation models, and we have earlier developed a prototype of mealtime assistance simulation model. This simulation model had a tongue model with a sensor system to detect spoon motions, and its fundamental functions were evaluated via spoon detection experiments. Based on the earlier achievements, in this study, we develop an evaluation system of feeding skill using a spoon. The pressing force and position by spoon on the tongue model were estimated by transfer functions derived from experiments. In addition, we developed an algorithm that leads students' spoon position and pressing force in the correct position. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oral care is crucial to preventing diseases and maintaining the quality of life of elderly people. To create an effective training environment for nursing students, we developed a second prototype of an oral care simulator that can guide and record oral care practices. The simulator has three components: (1) a dentition model with pressure sensors, (2) a microcomputer to record signals, and (3) software for visualization. We proposed a novel mechanism to detect brushing behavior using pressure sensors and developed software to visualize the records of oral care practice. We calibrated the system to estimate the weights applied in the dentition model using a brush and verified that the calibration increased the accuracy of the estimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

doi: 10.1111/j.1741-2358.2011.00459.x Relationship between subjective assessment of oral health and medical expenses in community-dwelling elderly persons Objectives: The increasing medical expenses of elderly persons in Japan's rapidly ageing society have become a major concern. It is therefore important to elucidate the factors associated with such escalation. Here, we focused on the relationship between subjective self-assessment of oral health, as an index of general health, and medical expenses (excluding dental repair) under the hypothesis that oral health contributes to general medical expenses. Several studies have shown that oral health status is correlated with general health status among elderly persons. We speculated that oral health status might show a relation with medical costs among elderly persons. However, few studies have investigated this relationship to date. Materials and Methods: Participants were 259 elderly subjects (range: 65-84 years; 120 men, 139 women) residing independently. Subjective assessment of oral health was evaluated by their responses ('Good', 'Not good' and 'Not at all good') on a survey questionnaire. The correlation between subjective assessment of oral health and medical expenditure was analysed using Spearman's rank method, the Mann-Whitney U-test and the Kruskal-Wallis test. Medical expenses were used as the dependent variable in multinomial logistic regression analysis with background and intraoral factors as independent variables. Results: A slight yet statistically significant correlation was observed between subjective assessment of oral health and outpatient treatment fees. Conclusion: The findings revealed that subjective assessment of oral health is significantly and independently related to the medical expenses of community-dwelling elderly persons after adjusting for social background, living environment and physical factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

doi: 10.1111/j.1741-2358.2011.00597.x Relationships between Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index scores and general physical status in community-dwelling older adults Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI) and general physical status among community-dwelling older adults. Background: Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index is a patient-centred assessment of oral health for older adults. We hypothesised that GOHAI is a significant indicator of general physical status of older adults. Methods: This study included 354 adults (age, ≥65 years) living independently. Body mass index, handgrip strength and one-leg standing time with eyes open were used to evaluate the general physical status. Spearman's rank correlation coefficients were calculated to examine the relationships between the GOHAI scores, its three subdivided categories (physical function, psychological function and pain and discomfort) and each physical status measurement. A stepwise linear regression model was applied with each physical status measurement as the dependent variable and the GOHAI scores and its subdivisions as the principal independent variable. Results: Positive correlations were found between the GOHAI scores, its three subdivided categories and handgrip strength. The physical function category positively correlated with one-leg standing time. The GOHAI and the pain and discomfort category scores were retained in the final models of stepwise regression for handgrip strength, and significant relationships persisted after adjustments for demographic, psychosocial, medical and dental status. Conclusion: The GOHAI scores and its pain and discomfort category score may be significant indicators of body muscle strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Introduction: Higher level functional capacity is considered a crucial component for independent living among the elderly. The aim of the present study was to show the relationships between self-assessed masticatory ability and higher level functional capacity among young-old persons living independently in the community. Materials and methods: A total of 366 persons aged 67–74 years was enrolled in the study. Data on background factors and self-assessed masticatory ability were collected by questionnaires. Self-assessed masticatory ability was classified into one of three categories (ability to chew all kinds of food, only somewhat hard food, or only soft or puréed food). Higher level functional capacity was measured using the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology Index, which consists of three sublevels: instrumental self-maintenance, intellectual activity, and social role. Results: Significant differences were found in the total score (13-point scale), intellectual activity (4-point scale), and social role (4-point scale) among the three groups of self-assessed masticatory ability. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that severely impaired masticatory ability (the ability to chew only soft and puréed food) was significantly related to a loss of three points or more for the total score, and a loss of one point or more for intellectual activity and social role after adjustment for a number of confounding variables. Conclusion: Self-assessed masticatory ability is significantly and independently related to higher level functional capacity, especially intellectual activity and social role, among young-old persons living independently in the community. It is worthwhile noting masticatory ability when clinicians investigate factors associated with disability in independent living. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Summary: Background: Serum albumin is considered a key nutrient that is significantly related to general health among elderly persons. The aim of the present study was to determine the relationship between masticatory ability and serum albumin levels in the elderly. Methods: A total of 768 persons were enrolled in the study. Data on background factors and the self-assessed masticatory ability were collected by means of questionnaires. An intraoral examination was performed to examine the pattern of occluding pairs of natural teeth, and blood samples were collected from the cutaneous vein to measure serum albumin levels. A forward stepwise multivariate logistic model was constructed with serum albumin levels as the dependent variable and the self-assessed masticatory ability as the principal independent variable, to adjust for potential confounding variables. Results: Sex, current employment status, social interaction, and self-assessed masticatory ability were retained in the final model, and they were significantly associated with serum albumin levels. The odds ratios for lower levels of serum albumin (≤ 40 g/L) were 1.88 for males, 1.70 for non-working status, 1.55 for low social activity status, and 1.43 for the self-assessed impairment of masticatory ability. Conclusion: A weak, statistically significant relationship may exist between self-assessed impairment of masticatory ability and lower levels of serum albumin in the elderly living independently. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]