Dysphagia is considered a geriatric syndrome that is characterized by inability to or difficulty in safely and effectively forming or moving the food bolus toward the esophagus. This pathology is very common and affects approximately 50% of institutionalized older people. Dysphagia is often accompanied by high nutritional, functional, social, and emotional risks. This relationship implies a higher rate of morbidity, disability, dependence, and mortality in this population. This review is aimed at studying the relationship between dysphagia and different health-related risk factors in institutionalized older people. We conducted a systematic review. The bibliographic search was performed in the Web of Science, Medline, and Scopus databases. Data extraction and methodological quality were evaluated by two independent researchers. Twenty-nine studies met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. A clear relationship between the development and progression of dysphagia and a high nutritional, cognitive, functional, social, and emotional risk in institutionalized older adults was found. There is an important relationship between these health conditions that shows the need for research and new approaches to considerations such as their prevention and treatment as well as the design of protocols and procedures that will help reduce the percentage of morbidity, disability, dependence, and mortality in older people.

Background/Objectives: Malnutrition is a very common condition among older people and strongly affects their quality of life. The current literature relates the presence of nutritional deficiencies to several health-related factors that usually emerge at advanced stages of life. This study aimed to assess the associations between malnutrition and its determinants in a group of institutionalized older people via the Mini Nutritional Assessment–Short Form (MNA-SF) and the full MNA. Methods: The MNA-SF was compared with the full MNA to evaluate the nutritional status of 207 older people. A multinomial logistic regression analysis was performed. Results: The data revealed that institutionalized older people with cognitive impairment, frailty syndrome, dysphagia, a low BMI, a high duration of institutionalization, and a low educational level are more likely to be malnourished or at risk of malnutrition. Conclusions: The results reveal that the MNA or MNA-SF may not identify common determinants of malnutrition or nutritional risk. The identified determinants depend on the test. Therefore, the data obtained determine the need to use adequate nutritional screening tools to control the presence of malnutrition. Nutritional screening is essential to decrease public costs, hospitalizations, rates of disability, dependence, morbidity, and even mortality among institutionalized older people.

Hearing loss (HL) and language impairment occur in the context of various types of cognitive impairment. There is extensive scientific literature on the relationship between HL and cognitive impairment or the risk of dementia, but its impact on language impairment is not well understood. This systematic review investigates the potential relationship between HL and language impairment in dementia patients. We conducted literature searches in the Scopus, Web of Science, and Medline databases from inception to May 2024 in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. Data extraction and methodological quality assessment, including risk of bias, were carried out. The search returned 767 articles for evaluation, which resulted in 14 that met the inclusion criteria. Overall, the results included 3676 older individuals, of whom 677 had dementia. Significant associations were observed between HL and language impairment, with a stronger association observed in comprehension than in production, although there was no evidence of causality. Addressing hearing loss may play a role in managing language deficits in patients with dementia. Central auditory processing (CAP) and cognitive load are as critical as, if not more vital than, peripheral HL in language impairment in dementia patients. The quantification and directionality of the possible effects of language and hearing impairment on the genesis of dementia require longitudinal studies.