Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 23, 2026
Oral Health Assessment by Lay Personnel for Older Adults
Published on: February 2, 2020
Detection of mild hyposalivation in elderly people based on the chewing time of specifically designed disc tests:
Isabelle Madinier1, Mireille Starita-Geribaldi, Frederic Berthier
1Laboratory of Oral Microbiology URE 01 UNS, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, Nice, France. Isabelle.MADINIER@unice.fr
Objectives:
To compare sialometry with chewing time (including swallowing) of specifically designed disc tests.
Design:
Index test versus reference standard (sialometry; 60 patients); reliability study (10 patients).
Setting:
Outpatient dental clinic and geriatric ward, Nice University Hospital, France.
Participants:
Thirty adults and 30 older patients (mean ages 47 and 84).
Intervention:
Index test assessment in patients with and without hyposalivation.
Measurements:
Data from medical files, interviews and oral examination were collected. Sialometry (stimulated salivary flow rate (SSFR) mL/min) and disc chewing times (seconds) were measured.
Results:
Sialometry was too long and was inappropriate for five of the 30 older persons. Chewing times were negatively correlated to sialometry results (Spearman correlation coefficient (R)=0.77, P<.001). The threshold to diagnose hyposalivation (SSFR <1 mL/min) was 40 seconds (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC)=0.921, 100% sensitivity, 72% specificity). Twenty-seven subjects with a SSFR less than 1.5 mL/min had a chewing time longer than 40 seconds, suggesting that mild hyposalivation and eating difficulties were related (AUC=0.941, 93% sensitivity, 88% specificity). Mean chewing time was greater with xerostomia (51.9 vs 30.7 seconds, P<.001) but not with dental pain (39.5 vs 39.9, P=.96). Masticatory percentage (e.g., pairs of antagonistic teeth) had no effect on chewing time (SSFR <1 mL/min, AUC=0.921; SSFR <1.5 mL/min, AUC=0.950). Reliability was better for the disc test than for sialometry (intraclass correlation 0.85 vs 0.70).
Conclusion:
This disc test was conceived to detect mild hyposalivation in geriatric patients with impaired dental health. Early detection of hyposalivation could help to suppress or avoid xerostomia-inducing drugs and to prevent oral infections and dental caries.
