Association between oral health and handgrip strength: a systematic review

It is well-established that muscle mass strength is a key factor in healthy physical functioning and is necessary for an active lifestyle. Handgrip strength (HGS) is the most convenient and cost-effective method for evaluating overall muscle strength in the body. Various studies have investigated the direct impact of inflammatory oral diseases on HGS, but with conflicting results. This systematic review investigated previous study data and analysed the causal factors in oral disease that affect HGS.

The PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were searched for articles using relevant keywords. Based on the inclusion criteria, 8 cross-sectional studies were selected, and the extracted data was interpreted and analysed systematically. Quality assessment was done using the National Institutes of Health Quality Assessment Tool.

Although 4 studies were shown to have used good quality assessment tools, heterogeneity in the methodology and data analysis prevented us from conducting a meta-analysis. Most of the studies were conducted between 2020 to 2022 and 7 were from Asian countries. The findings of these studies indicated a positive correlation between good oral health and strong HGS. Poor oral habits and oral conditions such as periodontitis and tooth loss inversely affected HGS, as did intrinsic factors like age and sex.

Limited global studies and heterogeneous study data emerged as the major shortcomings in our systematic study review and precluded meta-analysis. Therefore, further studies are needed with standard methodologies and outcome measures as well as good global representation.

PROSPERO Identifier: CRD42023441854.