Alcohol Use Among Older Persons in a Rural State

Objectives. This study aimed to describe the cross-sectional and longitudinal association between alcohol intake and gait parameters in older persons.Methods. Community-dwelling persons aged 65–70 years (N=807). Information on health, functional status, and alcohol use was self-reported at baseline and at 3-year follow-up, whereas gait speed and stride-to-stride variability were measured while walking only (single task) and under dual tasking (counting backwards).Results. Compared to light-to-moderate drinking, heavy drinking was associated with slower gait speed in single task (adj. coeff.: −.040, 95% CI: −.0.78 to −.002,p=.035). No significant association was observed between heavy drinking and gait speed variability. Nondrinkers walked significantly slower than light-to-moderate drinkers in dual task and had significantly higher gait speed variability in both single and dual task, but these associations disappeared after adjustment for comorbidity. At follow-up, 35.2% and 34.1% of the participants walked significantly slower in single and dual task, respectively. This proportion varied a little across drinking categories.Conclusion. At baseline, heavy alcohol consumption was significantly associated with slower gait speed in single task. Selective survival of the fittest heavy drinkers probably explains why this association faded in longitudinal analyses. The trend of poorer gait performance in nondrinkers disappeared after adjustment for comorbidity, suggesting confounding by a worse health status.

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ALCOHOL USE AND FRAILTY IN COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER PERSONS AGED 65 TO 70 YEARS

Journal of Frailty & Aging ◽

10.14283/jfa.2014.2 ◽

2014 ◽

pp. 1-6

Author(s):

L. SEEMATTER-BAGNOUD ◽

J. SPAGNOLI ◽

C. BULA ◽

B. SANTOS-EGGIMANN

Keyword(s):

At Risk ◽

Alcohol Use ◽

Older Persons ◽

Population Based ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Age Related ◽

J Curve ◽

Heavy Drinkers ◽

Survival Effect

Background:Alcohol use has beneficial as well as adverse consequences on health, but few studiesexamined its role in the development of age-related frailty. Objectives:To describe the cross-sectional andlongitudinal association between alcohol intake and frailty in older persons. Design:The Lausanne cohort 65+population-based study, launched in 2004. Setting:Community. Participants:One thousand five hundred sixty-four persons aged 65-70 years. Measurements:Annual data collection included demographics, health andfunctional status, extended by a physical examination every 3 years. Alcohol use (AUDIT-C), and Fried’s frailtycriteria were measured at baseline and 3-year follow-up. Participants were categorized into robust (0 frailtycriterion) and vulnerable (1+ criteria). Results:Few participants (13.0%) reported no alcohol consumption overthe past year, 57.8% were light-to-moderate drinkers, while 29.3% drank above recommended thresholds (18.7%“at risk” and 10.5% “heavy” drinkers). At baseline, vulnerability was most frequent in non-drinkers (43.0%),least frequent in light-to-moderate drinkers (26.2%), and amounted to 31.9% in “heavy” drinkers showing areverse J-curve pattern. In multivariate analysis, compared to light-to-moderate drinkers, non-drinkers had twicehigher odds of prevalent (adjOR: 2.24; 95%CI:1.39-3.59; p=.001), as well as 3-year incident vulnerability(adjOR: 2.00; 95%CI:1.02-3.91; p=.043). No significant association was observed among “at risk” and “heavy”drinkers. Conclusion:Non-drinkers had two-times higher odds of prevalent and 3-year incident vulnerability,even after adjusting for their baseline poorer health status. Although residual confounding is still possible, theseresults likely reflect a healthy survival effect among drinkers while those who experienced health- or alcohol-related problems stopped drinking earlier.

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