Intra-oral tactile sensation and aging in a community-based population

Area of Science:

• Oral sensory science
• Gerontology
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Intra-oral sensory function is crucial for swallowing and eating.
• The effects of aging on oral tactile perception are not well understood.
• This study investigates age, ethnicity, and gender impacts on oral tactile sensitivity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine how age, ethnicity, and gender influence tactile perception at different intra-oral locations.
• To compare tactile sensitivity across the anterior tongue, posterior tongue, and velum.
• To assess the repeatability and intensity scaling of tactile stimuli in different demographic groups.

Main Methods:

• Air-pressure stimuli were applied to the anterior/posterior tongue and velum.
• Participants provided intensity judgments using direct scaling.
• Data were analyzed using mixed-model multivariate repeated measures ANOVA.

Main Results:

• The anterior tongue showed significantly greater and more consistent responses than other sites.
• Mexican-Americans reported lower stimulus intensity judgments than European-Americans.
• No significant differences in the slopes of intensity functions or repeatability were found across age, gender, or ethnic groups.

Conclusions:

• Tactile perception is most intense on the anterior tongue compared to the posterior tongue or velum.
• European-Americans reported higher intensity perceptions than Mexican-Americans.
• Intra-oral tactile perception appears to be well-preserved throughout the aging process, with no significant age, gender, or ethnic group differences in functional consistency.