Multidimensional oral frailty scale developed through an international e-Delphi approach

Area of Science:

• Geriatric Dentistry
• Oral Health
• Public Health

Background:

• Oral frailty is a distinct phenotype of functional decline affecting mastication, swallowing, oral motor skills, and salivation.
• A comprehensive understanding of oral frailty is crucial for geriatric patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a patient-reported, multidimensional scale for assessing oral frailty.
• To utilize an e-Delphi approach with international experts to create the scale.

Main Methods:

• An operational definition of oral frailty guided scale development, assessing 8 components across 4 domains.
• A systematic literature search identified 185 potential items, refined through a 3-round e-Delphi process with 25 international experts.
• Experts rated item relevance, suggested new items, and ranked them by importance to select the final 24 items.

Main Results:

• The e-Delphi process refined 185 initial items down to a 24-item scale (OF-24).
• The final scale captures key dimensions of oral frailty, including mastication, swallowing, oral motor skills, and salivation.
• Expert consensus was achieved on item wording, response options, and recall periods.

Conclusions:

• The 24-Item Oral Frailty Scale (OF-24) is a validated, patient-reported tool for detecting oral frailty.
• OF-24 is suitable for use in clinical and community settings for diagnosis, risk stratification, and early intervention.
• Further validation across diverse populations and languages is recommended for widespread adoption.