IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v22y2025i10p1470-d1756887.html

The Impact of Swallowing Difficulties on Quality of Life in Adults with Intellectual Disabilities in Residential Care: Cross-Sectional Study

Author

Listed:
  • Maya Izumi

    (School of Oral Health Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kyushu Dental University, Fukuoka 803-8580, Japan)

  • Seijun Ganaha

    (Kumamoto Kizuna Dental Office, Kumamoto 861-5255, Japan)

  • Yuki Kai

    (Kumamoto Kizuna Dental Office, Kumamoto 861-5255, Japan)

  • Ikuri Konishi

    (Aso Kizuna Dental Office, Kumamoto 869-2612, Japan)

  • Risa Kira

    (Aso Kizuna Dental Office, Kumamoto 869-2612, Japan)

  • Sumio Akifusa

    (School of Oral Health Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kyushu Dental University, Fukuoka 803-8580, Japan)

Abstract

Dysphagia is a common but often overlooked concern among individuals with intellectual disabilities and may negatively impact their quality of life. This study aimed to examine the association between swallowing function and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among adults with intellectual disabilities in residential care. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study involving 48 individuals in residential care facilities in Japan. Swallowing function was assessed with the Eating Assessment Tool-10 (EAT-10), and HRQOL with the EuroQol-5 Dimension, five-level version (EQ-5D-5L), in which higher index values denote better HRQOL. A generalized linear model (GLM) with gamma distribution was used to identify factors associated with EQ-5D-5L scores. Participants with lower EAT-10 scores (≤2) showed significantly higher EQ-5D-5L scores. In the GLM, better swallowing function was positively associated with EQ-5D-5L score (B = 0.21, p = 0.012). Sensitivity analysis confirmed the robustness of this association. Conclusions: Swallowing dysfunction is linked to reduced HRQOL in individuals with intellectual disabilities, underscoring the need for regular screening and intervention.

Suggested Citation

  • Maya Izumi & Seijun Ganaha & Yuki Kai & Ikuri Konishi & Risa Kira & Sumio Akifusa, 2025. "The Impact of Swallowing Difficulties on Quality of Life in Adults with Intellectual Disabilities in Residential Care: Cross-Sectional Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 22(10), pages 1-12, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:22:y:2025:i:10:p:1470-:d:1756887
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/22/10/1470/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/22/10/1470/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Yuki Murotani & Kodai Hatta & Toshihito Takahashi & Yasuyuki Gondo & Kei Kamide & Mai Kabayama & Yukie Masui & Tatsuro Ishizaki & Ken-ichi Matsuda & Yusuke Mihara & Motoyoshi Fukutake & Yuichi Nishimu, 2021. "Oral Functions Are Associated with Muscle Strength and Physical Performance in Old-Old Japanese," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(24), pages 1-8, December.
    2. Michael L. Wehmeyer, 2020. "The Importance of Self-Determination to the Quality of Life of People with Intellectual Disability: A Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-7, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Majed A. Alsalem & Hana A. Alzahrani, 2023. "The Role of Institutional Practice in Promoting Inclusive Education for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students: A Critical Analysis," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, October.
    2. Amanda Wilkinson & Allyson Calder & Beth Elliott & Ryan Rodger & Hilda Mulligan & Leigh Hale & Meredith Perry, 2023. "Disabled People or Their Support Persons’ Perceptions of a Community Based Multi-Sensory Environment (MSE): A Mixed-Method Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(19), pages 1-15, September.
    3. Ann-Marie Öhrvall & Margret Buchholz & Annika Sköld, 2025. "The Complex Matter of Requesting Support—Experiences of Persons with Intellectual Disability," Disabilities, MDPI, vol. 5(2), pages 1-18, May.
    4. Anna K. Eggimann & Leo Badura & Rahel Zehnder & Miriam Koemeda & Ramona Buser & Martin Schimmel, 2024. "A Comparison of Oral Function in Older In- and Outpatients: An Observational Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(8), pages 1-10, July.
    5. Akihiko Murayama & Daisuke Higuchi & Kosuke Saida & Shigeya Tanaka & Tomoyuki Shinohara, 2024. "Fall Risk Prediction for Community-Dwelling Older Adults: Analysis of Assessment Scale and Evaluation Items without Actual Measurement," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(2), pages 1-11, February.
    6. Keyu Ye & Selina McCoy, 2024. "Examining the Post-School Decision-Making and Self-Determination of Disabled Young Adults in Ireland," Disabilities, MDPI, vol. 4(3), pages 1-18, June.
    7. Lilian Castro-Durán & Gloria Sanzana-Vallejos & Viviana Vallejos-Garcías & Rafael Zapata-Lamana & Ana Mendoza-Mardones & Loreto Dávila-Opazo & Javiera Duhart-Carrión & Inti Huaiquipan-Ortega & Igor Ci, 2024. "Linguistic and Cultural Adaptation of a Self-Determination Scale for People with Intellectual Disabilities," Disabilities, MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-16, September.
    8. Pavlos Kapsalakis & Evdoxia Nteropoulou-Nterou, 2024. "Perspectives of Adults with Intellectual Disabilities on Quality of Life: A Qualitative Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(9), pages 1-30, September.
    9. Tobias Skuban-Eiseler, 2022. "Sexual Self-Determination of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities—A Possible Philosophical Conceptualization and Resulting Practical Challenges," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-12, October.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:22:y:2025:i:10:p:1470-:d:1756887. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.