scholarly journals Comparison of the Daily Fitness Test in Nursing Home Residents and Community-Dwelling Residents Elderly Women

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 409-415
Author(s):  
Min-Hwa Suk ◽  
Hee-Seung Jang ◽  
Jin-Wook Lee
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Nursing Home ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Elderly Women ◽  
Nursing Home Residents ◽  
Exercise Program ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Step Test ◽  
Fitness Test

PURPOSE:The purpose of this study was to compare the daily fitness tests of nursing home residents and community-dwelling elderly women after 16 weeks program.METHODS:Thirty elderly women living in a nursing home (n=14) or community (n=16) participated in the study. The program was assigned 1 hour twice a week for 16 weeks to improve the physical activity for the elderly women. The daily fitness test assessed the physical fitness levels for elderly. The tests performed the 2-min step test, chair stand test, arm curl test, chair sit and reach test, backscratch test, 244-cm up and go test.RESULTS:A result of the study show that the daily physical fitness of the elderly women living in the community is higher than those living in nursing homes. After the program which induced physical activity, 2-min step test (<i>p</i><.05) and 244-cm up and go test (<i>p</i><.05) were much improved in the elderly living in nursing homes.CONCLUSIONS:Although the daily fitness of nursing home residents was lower than community-dwelling residents, there was a significant improvement after exercise program.

Serum Myostatin Levels Are Higher in Fitter, More Active, and Non-Frail Long-Term Nursing Home Residents and Increase after a Physical Exercise Intervention

Gerontology ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 229-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haritz Arrieta ◽  
Gotzone Hervás ◽  
Chloe Rezola-Pardo ◽  
Fátima Ruiz-Litago ◽  
Miren Iturburu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Body Composition ◽  
Nursing Home ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Physical Activity Level ◽  
Exercise Intervention ◽  
Nursing Home Residents ◽  
Exercise Program ◽  
Activity Level

Background: Myostatin has been proposed as a candidate biomarker for frailty and sarcopenia. However, the relationship of myostatin with these conditions remains inconclusive. Objective: To determine the association of serum myostatin concentration with body composition, physical fitness, physical activity level, and frailty in long-term nursing home residents. We also aimed to ascertain the effect of an exercise program on myostatin levels. Methods: We obtained study data on 112 participants from long-term nursing homes. Participants were randomly assigned to a control or an intervention group and performed a 6-month multicomponent exercise program. Serum myostatin levels were analyzed by ELISA. Assessments also included body composition (anthropometry and bioelectrical impedance), physical fitness (Senior Fitness Test), physical activity level (accelerometry), and frailty (Fried frailty criteria, Clinical Frailty Scale, and Tilburg frailty indicator). Results: The concentration of myostatin at baseline was positively correlated with: a leaner body composition (p < 0.05), and a higher number of steps per day and light and moderate-vigorous physical activity in women (p < 0.005); greater upper and lower limb strength, endurance, and poorer flexibility (p < 0.05) in men; and better performance (less time) in the 8-ft timed up-and-go test in both women (p < 0.01) and men (p < 0.005). We observed higher concentrations of serum myostatin in non-frail than in frail participants (p < 0.05). Additionally, we found that the implemented physical exercise intervention, which was effective to improve physical fitness, increased myostatin concentration in men (p < 0.05) but not in women. The improvements in physical condition were related with increases in serum myostatin only in men (p < 0.05–0.01). Conclusions: Higher serum levels of myostatin were found to be associated with better physical fitness. The improvements in physical fitness after the intervention were positively related to increases in myostatin concentrations in men. These results seem to rule out the idea that high serum myostatin levels are indicative of frailty in long-term nursing home residents. However, although the direction of association was opposite to that expected for the function of myostatin, the use of this protein as a biomarker for physical fitness, rather than frailty, merits further study.

scholarly journals Impact of Strength Training Program on Physical Fitness and Psychical Condition for Elderly Women

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (88) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vaiva Abramavičiūtė ◽  
Kristina Zaičenkovienė
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Body Composition ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Strength Training ◽  
Training Program ◽  
Elderly Women ◽  
Step Test ◽  
Training Period ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Experimental Group

Research background and hypothesis. There is a lot of research proving that physical activity improves psychical condition when there are symptoms of psychical illness. There is also a wide range of studies carried out investigating the impact of physical activity on physical abilities, but little is known how strength training program as a factor improves psychical condition and, at the same time, body composition, strength and endurance for elderly woman.Research aim was to study the impact of an 8-week strength training program on physical fitness and psychical condition for elderly women.Research methods were literature review, HADS to evaluate anxiety and depression symptoms, anthropometry, strength and endurance testing, statistical analysis of physical fitness and psychical condition indices. Research results. In the period of 8-week strength training program we found that it had a positive impact on the indices in the experimental group compared to those in the control group. Psychical condition and strength results in experimental group were statistically significant (p  < 0.05); a significantly different change in aerobic endurance was measured during the 2 min step test. BMI and the body composition measures did not change statistically significantly.Discussion  and  conclusions. The  main  finding  is  that  an  8-week  strength  training  period  had  a  significant impact on psychical condition for elderly women. Moreover, strength training exercises improved upper and lower body muscle strength. Endurance improvement was observed during 2-min step test, but 6-min test results were insignificant (p > 0.05). After the 8-week training period, no significant differences in BMI and body composition were observed, although there was a slightly tendency of decrease in the experimental group.Keywords: elderly women, physical fitness, psychical condition, 8-week strength training programme, HADS, BMI.

scholarly journals Depression in elderly women resident in a long-stay nursing home

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Agostini Lampert ◽  
Ana Luiza Pereira Rosso
Keyword(s):  
Mental Retardation ◽  
Nursing Home ◽  
Psychiatric Disorder ◽  
Psychosocial Factors ◽  
Elderly Women ◽  
Geriatric Depression Scale ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Community Dwelling

Depression is the most common psychiatric disorder among the elderly: it is present in 23-40% of community-dwelling elderly and in 25-80% of institutionalized elderly. Depressive symptoms are most prevalent in elderly women because they more readily seek healthcare services, are more vulnerable to stress and live longer than men. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of depression and its comorbidities in a long-stay nursing home (NH). METHODS: This retrospective, descriptive, epidemiological study was performed at a NH in southern Brazil and comprised the first part of a larger project to determine depression and its relationship with psychosocial factors in NH residents. Sociodemographic and medical data were obtained through the examination of medical files from November 2012 to January 2013. Depression was defined as the diagnosis reported by physicians in medical files and scores on the Geriatric Depression Scale (15-item version) above 5. Other clinical and psychiatric diagnoses were obtained from medical files. RESULTS: Out of a total of 142 elderly women, 51.4% had at least one psychiatric disorder, the most common being depression, affective bipolar disorder and mental retardation. Almost one third (32.3%) of the elderly women were depressed. The ward containing the highest number of cognitively and physically independent women contained 41.3% of the total depressed elderly. A total of 52.1% of all depressed elderly had other associated clinical or psychiatric disorders, with mental retardation and hypothyroidism being the most frequent. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of dementia was high in this NH. Further studies evaluating the psychosocial factors involved in depressed elders should be conducted in an effort to prevent depression and promote mental health in institutionalized elders.

scholarly journals Sex- and age-specific normative values for handgrip strength and components of the Senior Fitness Test in community-dwelling older adults aged 65–75 years in Germany: results from the OUTDOOR ACTIVE study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Birte Marie Albrecht ◽  
Imke Stalling ◽  
Karin Bammann
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Handgrip Strength ◽  
Scratch Test ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Step Test ◽  
Normative Values ◽  
Chair Stand ◽  
Fitness Test ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

Abstract Background Physical fitness is a key component of independent living and healthy ageing. For the measurement of physical fitness in older adults, the Senior Fitness Test is a commonly used tool. The objective of this study is to calculate sex- and age-specific normative values for handgrip strength and components of the Senior Fitness Test for older adults (65–75 years) in Germany. Methods Cross-sectional data of 1657 community-dwelling older adults residing in Bremen, Germany (53% female) were included in this study. Physical fitness was assessed using the following measurements of the Senior Fitness Test battery: 30s-chair stand test, 2 min-step test, sit-and-reach test, and back scratch test. In addition, handgrip strength was measured using a Saehan DHD-3 digital hand dynamometer SH1003. Sex- and age specific normative values were calculated for the 1st, 3rd, 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th, 97th, and 99th percentile using the GAMLSS method. Results The normative values show differences dependent on sex and age. For handgrip strength, the 30s-chair stand test and the 2 min-step test, normative values were higher for men, while women reached higher values in the sit-and-reach test and the back scratch test. For both, men and women, normative values declined with age. Conclusions This study provides sex- and age-specific normative values for handgrip strength and components of the Senior Fitness Test for older adults in Germany. They might be useful for future research and for the application in practice.

Hoarding Behavior in the Elderly: A Comparison Between Community-Dwelling Persons and Nursing Home Residents

2003 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 289-306 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcia S. Marx ◽  
Jiska Cohen-Mansfield
Keyword(s):  
Nursing Home ◽  
Social Functioning ◽  
Day Care ◽  
Nursing Home Residents ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Elderly Persons ◽  
Medical Diagnoses ◽  
Hoarding Behavior ◽  
Diagnosis Of Dementia

Objective: To determine correlates of hoarding behavior in frail elderly persons. Methods: Information about nursing home residents (n = 408) and community-dwelling senior day-care participants (n = 177) was gathered through interviews with family and professional caregivers, medical chart review, and physician examinations, and included the following areas of assessment: hoarding behavior, demographic and health information, level of cognitive functioning, activities of daily living (ADL) performance, depressed affect, social functioning, manifestations of agitated behaviors, and previous stressful life experiences. Results: We found that 15% of the nursing home residents and 25% of the community-dwelling senior day-care participants manifested hoarding behavior at a rate of several times a week or higher. For nursing home residents, hoarding behavior was significantly related to a larger appetite, taking fewer medications, higher social functioning, comparatively less ADL impairment, and manifestations of physically nonaggressive agitated behaviors. For senior day-care participants, hoarding behavior was significantly associated with being female, a larger appetite, comparatively less gait impairment, fewer medical diagnoses, more involvement in activities, a positive diagnosis of dementia, hallucinations, the delusion of infidelity, and manifestations of three syndromes of agitated behaviors. Conclusion: While hoarding behavior in our samples presents differently from compulsive hoarding described in the literature, we obtained robust findings that show that despite differences in living conditions, the elderly persons who manifested hoarding behavior were those with relatively fewer health and functional disabilities. In addition, those who exhibited hoarding behavior also manifested agitated behaviors. We suggest that future researchers develop alternative measures of hoarding behavior so as to further clarify the phenomenon of hoarding behavior in the elderly.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document