Relationship between oral health and social activity among community-dwelling older adults in Korea: Focusing on the mediating effect of depressive symptoms

Aim This study aimed to examine the relationship between oral health and social activity, and explore the mediating effect of depressive symptoms on the relationship between oral health and social activity among community-dwelling older adults in Korea. Methods A total of 5033 community-dwelling older adults aged >= 65 years were included in the analysis. Data were obtained from the seventh wave (2018) of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging. Descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation analysis and path analysis for mediation analysis were used. Results Path analysis showed that older adults with better oral health had more social activities (beta = 0.177, P < 0.001) and fewer depressive symptoms (beta = -0.174, P < 0.001). Depressive symptoms had a mediating role partially in the relationship between oral health and social activity (beta = 0.014, P < 0.001). The results of in-depth exploration using oral health subdomains showed that physical oral function and oral pain or discomfort were directly related to the social activity (beta = 0.083 and beta = 0.149, respectively) and indirectly mediated by depressive symptoms (beta = 0.006 and beta = 0.004, respectively). However, psychosocial oral function only had an indirect effect on social activity mediated by depressive symptoms (beta = 0.006, P = 0.005). Conclusions Better oral health had a significant association with higher levels of social activities, which was partially mediated by decreased depressive symptoms. It is necessary to pay more attention to oral health promotion for older adults to decrease depressive symptoms and increase participation in social activities. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2022; 22: 766-772.