Aim: The present study aimed to determine whether decreased masticatory performance and tongue-lip motor function are associated with an increased incidence of adverse health events in patients with metabolic disease.

Methods: One thousand patients with metabolic diseases including diabetes, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and hyperuricemia were recruited. Masticatory performance was assessed using a gummy jelly test, wherein glucose elution from chewed gummy jelly was measured. The tongue-lip motor function was measured using repeatedly pronounced syllables per second. Their association with the incidence of adverse health events (a composite of all-cause death, cardiovascular disease, bone fracture, malignant neoplasm, pneumonia, and dementia) was investigated using the generalized propensity score (GPS) method.

Results: During a median follow-up period of 36.6 (interquartile range, 35.0–37.7) months, adverse health events were observed in 191 patients. The GPS adjusted dose-response function demonstrated that masticatory performance was inversely associated with the incidence of adverse health events. The 3-year incidence rate was 22.8% (95% confidence interval, 19.0–26.4%) for the lower quartile versus 13.6% (10.5–16.7%) for the upper quartile (P＜0.001). Similarly, the tongue-lip motor function was inversely associated with the incidence of adverse health events, with a 3-year incidence rate of 23.6% (20.0–27.0%) for the lower quartile versus 13.2% (10.4–15.9%) for the upper quartile (P＜0.001).

Conclusions: Decreased masticatory performance and tongue-lip motor function were associated with an increased incidence of adverse health events in patients with metabolic disease.