ArticleInternational journal of geriatric psychiatry2025
The Mediating Role of Formal Social Engagement in the Relationship Between Oral Health and Depressive Symptoms Among Older Adults in South Korea.
Article in International journal of geriatric psychiatry, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed.
- Oral Structural and Functional Impairment in Relation to Depressive Outcomes in Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies.Diseases (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Oral Health-Related Quality of Life and Self-Reported Oral Health Status Are Associated with Change in Self-Reported Depression Status: A Cohort Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Factors associated with oral health behaviors of older diabetic patients in Shanghai, China: a structural equation modeling analysis based on the COM-B model.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Oral Rehabilitation and Mental Health: Effects of the Renew Procedure on Depression Scores.Cureus · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectivesThe reciprocal relationship between oral health and mental health, and the underlying mechanisms remain underexplored. This study examined whether formal social engagement mediates the relationship between oral health and mental health in both directions.
methodsCross-lagged panel models with two-wave mediation were applied to data from 3860 older adults, aged 65 years or above, in the two waves of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging conducted in 2018 and 2020. Oral health was measured using the 12-item Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index, and mental health was assessed with the 10-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale.
resultsThe analysis identified a reciprocal relationship between oral health and depressive symptoms, with depressive symptoms exerting a stronger effect on oral health than vice versa. Formal social engagement partially mediated the effect of oral health on depressive symptoms, but not the other way around.
conclusionsThe findings reaffirm the interplay and interdependence of oral health and mental health among older adults. Comprehensive strategies that integrate social engagement opportunities are imperative for developing interventions targeting older adults with compromised oral health.
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