Background A growing number of older adults have natural teeth and are at high risk of oral diseases, which are induced by oral bacterial accumulation and proceed unnoticed and quietly. Our aim was (1) to examine the association of oral disease burden (ODB) with health and functioning among dentate long-term care residents, and (2) to find easily detectable signs for nurses to identify residents’ poor oral health. Methods In this cross-sectional observational study dentists examined 209 residents’ oral status, and nurses assessed residents for their functioning and nutrition in long-term care facilities in Helsinki, Finland. ODB was defined by asymptotic dental score (ADS). Six clinical signs of residents’ poor oral health were considered as potentially easy for nurses to detect: lesions on lips, teeth with increased mobility, lesions on oral mucosa, eating soft or pureed food, unclear speech, and needing assistance in eating. The association of these was tested with high ODB as outcome. Results Participants were grouped according to their ADS scores: low (n = 39), moderate (n = 96) and high ODB (n = 74). ODB was linearly associated with coronary artery disease and poor cognitive and physical functioning: needing assistance in eating, poor ability to make contact, and unclear speech but not with other diseases including dementia or demographic characteristics. Furthermore, ODB was linearly associated with eating soft or pureed food. Of the six selected, easily detectable signs, having at least two positive signs gave 89% sensitivity to detecting high ODB. Conclusion Poor oral health was common and ODB accumulated among residents with poor functioning. Nurses may use a few easily detectable signs to screen residents’ oral health when considering a resident’s need for consultation with an oral health professional.

Background: The objectives of this study were to compare oral frailty (OFr) among edentate and dentate older adults living in long-term care facilities (LTCF) and to clarify how edentulism and oral disease burden (ODB) of dentate older adults are associated with OFr. Methods: The population of this study comprised 94 edentate and 209 dentate residents in LTCF in Helsinki, Finland, who had previously participated in a nutritional study. The participants underwent a clinical oral examination. The dentate residents were further divided into three ODB groups based on asymptotic dental score. The edentate and different ODB groups were compared with each other regarding demographics and oral and medical findings. OFr was defined as ≥2 of following: having a diet of soft/pureed food, residue of food in the oral cavity, inability to keep the mouth open during examination, unclearness of speech, dry mouth. The association between OFr and edentulousness and various levels of ODB was analyzed by a multivariate logistic model. Results: Participants with low ODB had significantly less OFr than their edentate peers (p = 0.009). Furthermore, the edentate and dentate with high ODB had similar odds for OFr. Conclusions: Edentulousness and high ODB are equally harmful conditions and may predispose to OFr. This study suggests that maintaining healthy natural teeth and good oral health (low ODB) may protect against OFr. Trial registration: The Ethics Committee of the Hospital District of Helsinki and Uusimaa approved the protocols for the nutritional status and oral healthcare studies and the merging of the data, including patient medical records (Register number HUS/968/2017).