Soft-Tissue Facial Profile Is Associated With Tongue Pressure in Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Orthodontics
• Oral health

Background:

• Oral frailty, characterized by reduced tongue pressure, is a growing concern linked to systemic frailty in older adults.
• The connection between perioral muscle function, skeletal muscle mass, and maxillofacial morphology requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the relationship between sagittal and vertical soft-tissue facial profiles and tongue pressure and skeletal muscle mass in adults.
• To determine if facial morphology can serve as an indicator for reduced tongue pressure.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study of 75 adults (median age 69).
• Measured sagittal (N'-Sn-Pog' angle) and vertical (N'-Tra-Me' angle) soft-tissue facial morphology using lateral photographs.
• Assessed tongue pressure and skeletal muscle mass via specialized devices and body composition analysis.
• Statistical analyses included Spearman's correlation and multiple regression, adjusted for age, sex, and height.

Main Results:

• Tongue pressure positively correlated with the sagittal N'-Sn-Pog' angle, but not the vertical N'-Tra-Me' angle.
• Multiple regression confirmed an independent association between tongue pressure and the N'-Sn-Pog' angle.
• Skeletal muscle mass showed a positive association with the N'-Sn-Pog' angle when sex was excluded from the model.

Conclusions:

• Sagittal soft-tissue facial morphology (N'-Sn-Pog' angle) is positively associated with tongue pressure in middle-aged and older adults.
• Facial profile analysis from photographs may offer a simple, non-invasive method to identify individuals at risk of reduced tongue pressure and oral frailty.