Abstract

Healthy ageing is increasingly defined by preservation of functional ability, independence, participation, and quality of life rather than by lifespan extension alone. Oral function is a potentially modifiable component of this trajectory, yet prosthodontic care is rarely discussed within broader longevity-oriented healthcare models. This critical narrative review examines the evidence linking oral functional impairment with nutrition, frailty, cognition, psychosocial participation, and quality of life, while distinguishing observational associations from evidence generated by prosthodontic interventions. A structured literature search was undertaken using PubMed/MEDLINE and supplementary searches of major biomedical databases and authoritative health-agency sources, with emphasis on systematic reviews, meta-analyses, longitudinal studies, clinical intervention studies, and policy documents published from 2000 to July 2026. The literature was thematically synthesized rather than quantitatively pooled because of substantial heterogeneity in populations, definitions of oral function, prosthetic interventions, and outcome measures. Contemporary evidence supports consistent associations between tooth loss/oral frailty and adverse nutritional and functional outcomes, while evidence that prosthodontic rehabilitation directly modifies cognition, frailty, or longevity remains limited and predominantly observational. Importantly, recent systematic reviews indicate that prosthetic rehabilitation may improve nutritional status and oral-health-related quality of life, but effects on dietary intake and systemic outcomes are less consistent. Based on this evidence a proposed Prosthodontic Healthspan Framework is introduced, positioning restoration of oral functional reserve as a potential upstream component of healthy-ageing care. The framework emphasizes risk identification, restoration of mastication and swallowing-related function, nutritional co-management, longitudinal maintenance, and patient-centred outcomes. Prosthodontics should therefore be viewed not as a proven longevity therapy, but as a potentially important component of multidisciplinary healthspan preservation requiring prospective interventional evaluation.

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