Publication

Abstract : Aim: The aim of this study is to translate the oral and maxillofacial frailty index (OMFI) into Malayalam, culturally adapt it, and test its reliability and validity in the Kerala geriatric population. Materials and methods: OMFI was translated, culturally adapted, and validated in Malayalam using a methodological and cross-sectional study design. The Malayalam version of OMFI underwent full linguistic validation and was tested on 200 patients at Amritakripa Hospital in Kalpetta. Principal component analysis with varimax rotation was used for exploratory factor analysis, and Cronbach's alpha was used to assess reliability. Results: Two-hundred patients were recruited in this study. Participants ranged in age from 60 to 83 years; mean age was 68 years (SD: 15.21). In total 55.5% were male participants, and 30.5% were belonging to upper middle class as per the Kuppuswami scale. Only 12% of the participants were living alone. Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin was found to be 0.583, and Bartlett's test of sphericity was significant with a Chi-square test value of 1003.469. A principal axis factor analysis conducted on 20 items with orthogonal rotation (varimax). OMFI Malayalam version (5 items) had a good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.751). Item-total correlations were reviewed for the items of OMFI. Conclusion: The OMFI Malayalam version demonstrated acceptable validity and reliability and can be used to screen the oral frailty of the geriatric population in Kerala. Clinical significance: As Kerala is having highest geriatric population in India, we need to assess the oral frailty burden of Kerala. This study provided the first measure to assess the oral frailty in elderly in Kerala.