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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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Predictors of mobility decline
— the Hong Kong old-old study | | Author(s) | Suzanne C Ho, Jean Woo, Y K Yuen |
| Journal title | The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological sciences and medical sciences, vol 52A, no 6, November 1997 |
| Pages | pp M356-362 |
| Keywords | Mobility ; Inactivity ; Self care capacity ; Chinese people ; Over 70s ; Longitudinal surveys ; Hong Kong. |
| Annotation | Old age is often accompanied by functional decline and loss of autonomy. This longitudinal study examines the factors associated with mobility decline in a Hong Kong Chinese cohort aged 70 and over. Analyses were carried out on data collected from 1,483 older people who were functionally mobile at baseline and survived the 18-month follow-up period. The outcome variable `mobility decline' was measured using the Barthel Activities of Daily Living Scale, which assesses subjects' ability to be independent in walking a distance of 50 metres and/or moving up and down stairs during the 18-month follow-up. Multivariate backward stepwise logistic regression analysis revealed that the following baseline characteristics were independently associated with mobility decline during the follow-up period: increasing age; no formal level of education; no current practice of exercise; symptoms of palpitation; body mass index (BMI) below 20; and slow gait velocity. There was also significant association between the experience of falls during follow-up and mobility decline. The study concludes that low body weight, lack of exercise, and falls during the follow-up period might serve as markers for those at risk for mobility decline. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-981007003 A |
| Classmark | C4: C5: CA: TKL: BBK: 3J: 7DR |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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