Special Needs & Medical Study ✓ Peer reviewed

Number of natural teeth and intrinsic capacity among hospitalized older adults in China: a cross-sectional study on the role of social support.

Frontiers in medicine · Zhang X, Wu X · 2026-08-21

Researchers found that hospitalized older adults with fewer than 20 natural teeth were significantly more likely to have declined intrinsic capacity (a measure of healthy aging), and social support appeared to partially mediate this relationship.

A plain-English summary of the study's own findings — we don't add our own claims or interpretation. Read the full paper for the complete methods and results, and apply your own clinical judgement.

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