Patient-reported outcome measures for masticatory function in adults: a systematic review

Area of Science:

• Oral health research
• Measurement science

Background:

• Masticatory function is crucial for nutrition and quality of life.
• Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) are vital for assessing subjective health experiences.
• Evaluating existing PROMs for masticatory function is essential for clinical and research applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review and critically appraise PROMs designed to assess masticatory function in adults.
• To evaluate the methodological quality and psychometric properties of identified PROMs.

Main Methods:

• A comprehensive search of five electronic databases (Medline, Embase, Web of Science, CINAHL Plus, APA PsycINFO) was conducted up to March 2021.
• Studies developing or validating PROMs for adult masticatory function were included.
• The COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) checklist was used to assess methodological quality and psychometric properties.

Main Results:

• Twenty-three studies involving 19 distinct PROMs for masticatory function were identified.
• The methodological quality of the included studies varied significantly.
• Only a limited number of PROMs, such as the chewing function questionnaire (various languages) and food intake questionnaire (Japanese versions), showed moderate to high evidence for specific psychometric properties.

Conclusions:

• No single PROM for adult masticatory function currently exhibits high-level evidence across all psychometric properties.
• Significant variability exists in the psychometric performance of available PROMs.
• Further development and validation of PROMs are needed to ensure reliable assessment of masticatory function.