Prevalence and associated factors of dysphagia in nursing home residents

Dysphagia is a major health care problem in nursing homes. It can lead to fatal complications including aspiration pneumonia and even death. The aims of this study were to evaluate the prevalence of dysphagia in nursing home residents in South Korea and to identify factors associated with dysphagia. The study was conducted in two urban nursing homes and a total of 395 older adults (aged 65–103 years old, 76.5% female) were enrolled. The presence of dysphagia was evaluated using the Gugging Swallowing Screen (GUSS) test. Out of 395 older adults, the prevalence of dysphagia was 52.7%. The following were all risk factors associated with dysphagia: Aged 75 years or older, male gender, history of dementia, feeding time longer than 20 min, severe dependent functional status, solid meal type, high nutritional risk, and underweight. To prevent complications from dysphagia in nursing home residents, systematic screening and evaluation programs for dysphagia are needed.