Better olfaction was associated with lower healthcare expenditure among physically independent Japanese community-dwelling older adults: the Yanai study.

ABSTRACT: We aimed to determine whether olfaction is associated with healthcare expenditure among physically independent, community-dwelling older adults. This cross-sectional study included 162 community-dwelling older adults (mean age 70.2 ± 5.4 years; 48 men and 114 women) from the 2015 Yanai Study. Of these, we followed 71 participants (mean age 70.0 ± 5.7 years; 26 men and 45 women) in a longitudinal pilot study over 1.5 years, which measured healthcare expenditure from May 2015 to October 2016. Olfaction was examined using the Odor Stick Identification Test for Japanese people. The cross-sectional analysis showed that better overall olfaction was significantly associated with lower orthopedic expenditure at baseline when adjusted for covariates (f = 2.19; p = 0.115; p for linear trend = 0.048)

SUBMITTER: Kose Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12367730 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature