Relationship between anthropometric nutritional status and functional capacity in older adults living in the community

Demographic aging of the population allied with the new family structures and societal dynamics is generating an increasing demand for institutions for older adults. Nutritional status is a key health determinant that impacts the quality of life among older adults. Hence, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between nutritional status and nutritional risk, functional capacity, and cognition in institutionalised Portuguese older adults by a cross-sectional study in 15 institutions. Nutritional status (body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), nutritional risk (mini nutritional assessment (MNA)), degree of functional independence (Barthel index (BI)), and cognitive ability (mini mental state examination (MMSE)) were assessed. Of the 214 older adults evaluated, 28.0% were at risk of malnutrition, 69.6% were mildly functional dependent, and 39.3% presented minor cognitive impairment. The risk of malnutrition increased functional dependence and cognitive impairment. The MNA score, but not the BMI or WC, was related to disability and deficits in cognition. A differential interdependence was found between nutritional, cognitive, and functional status. Strategies to improve self-care and well-being in nursing homes should consider a correct diet and a closer evaluation of nutritional risk to preserve cognition, independence, and autonomy.

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Sex Differences in Characteristics Associated with Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use and Associations with Functional Capacity in Older Participants of the Berlin Aging Study II

Gerontology ◽

10.1159/000518411 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Sarah Toepfer ◽

Maximilian König ◽

Dominik Spira ◽

Johanna Drewelies ◽

Reinhold Kreutz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Higher Education ◽

Older Adults ◽

Sex Differences ◽

Nutritional Status ◽

Functional Capacity ◽

Medication Use ◽

Potentially Inappropriate Medications ◽

Men And Women ◽

Lower Odds ◽

Aging Study

Introduction: Medication safety is a vital aim in older adults’ pharmacotherapy. Increased morbidity and vulnerability require particularly careful prescribing. Beneath avoiding unnecessary polypharmacy and prescribing omissions, physicians have to be aware of potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) and related outcomes to optimize older adults’ drug therapy, and to reduce adverse drug events. Objective: The aim of this study was to identify participants characteristics associated with PIM use and associations of PIM use with functional capacity with a focus on sex differences. Methods: Multivariable logistic regression analyses of cross-sectional Berlin Aging Study II (BASE-II) data (N = 1,382, median age 69 years, interquartile range 67–71, 51.3% women) were performed with PIM classification according to the EU(7)-PIM list. Results: In the overall study population, higher education was associated with lower odds of PIM use (odds ratio [OR] 0.93, confidence interval [CI] 95% 0.87–0.99, p = 0.017). Falls (OR 1.53, CI 95% 1.08–2.17, p = 0.016), frailty/prefrailty (OR 1.68, 1.17–2.41, p = 0.005), and depression (OR 2.12, CI 95% 1.32–3.41, p = 0.002) were associated with increased odds of PIM use. A better nutritional status was associated with lower odds of PIM use (OR 0.88, CI 95% 0.81–0.97, p = 0.008). In the sex-stratified analysis, higher education was associated with lower odds of PIM use in men (OR 0.90, CI 95% 0.82–0.99, p = 0.032). Frailty/prefrailty was associated with increased odds of PIM use in men (OR 2.04, CI 95% 1.18–3.54, p = 0.011) and a better nutritional status was associated with lower odds of PIM use in men (OR 0.83, CI 95% 0.72–0.96, p = 0.011). Falls in the past 12 months were related to an increased prevalence of PIM use in women (OR 1.74, CI 95% 1.10–2.75, p = 0.019). Depression was associated with a higher prevalence of PIM use in both men (OR 2.74, CI 95% 1.20–6.24, p = 0.016) and women (OR 2.06, CI 95% 1.14–3.71, p = 0.017). We did not detect sex differences regarding the overall use of drugs with anticholinergic effects, but more men than women used PIMs referring to the cardiovascular system (p = 0.036), while more women than men used PIMs referring to the genitourinary system and sex hormones (p < 0.001). Conclusion: We found similarities, but also differences between men and women as to the associations between PIM use and participants’ characteristics and functional capacity assessments. The association of lower education with PIM use may suggest that physicians’ prescribing behavior is modified by patient education, a relationship that could evolve from more critical attitudes of educated patients towards medication use. We conclude that sex differences in associations of PIM use with functional capacities might be partly attributable to sex differences in drug classes used, but not with regard to anticholinergics, as these are used to a similar extent in men and women in the cohort studied here.

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Internet Navigation Skills for Financial Management: Associations with Age, Neurocognitive Performance, and Functional Capacity

10.31234/osf.io/q46r8 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Samina Rahman ◽

Victoria Kordovski ◽

Savanna Tierney ◽

Steven Paul Woods

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Functional Capacity ◽

Financial Management ◽

Internet Banking ◽

Online Banking ◽

Neurocognitive Performance ◽

Younger Adults ◽

Neurocognitive Functions ◽

Age Related ◽

Use Factors

Objective: Online banking is becoming increasingly common among older adults, whomay experience difficulties effectively navigating this instrumental technology. Thisstudy examined age effects on a performance-based Internet banking task and itsassociation with neurocognitive ability and functional capacity in older and youngeradults. Method: Thirty-five older adults and 50 younger adults completed anexperimenter-controlled online banking measure in which they independentlyperformed a series of naturalistic financial tasks (e.g., account transfers, bill paying).Participants also completed a standardized battery of neuropsychological tests andmeasures of functional capacity. Results: Older adults were markedly slower and lessaccurate in completing the Internet-based banking task, which was not confounded byother demographic, mood, or computer use factors. Higher scores on measures ofneurocognition and financial functional capacity were both strongly associated withhigher Internet-based banking task accuracy scores and quicker completion times inthe older, but not the younger adults. Conclusions: Findings suggest that older adultsexperience difficultly quickly and accurately navigating online banking platforms, whichmay be partly related to age-related declines in neurocognitive functions and basicfinancial capacity. Future studies might examine whether neurocognitive approaches toremediation and compensation can be used to improve online banking capacity inolder adults.

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Self-reported morbidities, nutritional characteristics, and associated factors in institutionalized and non-institutionalized older adults

BMC Geriatrics ◽

10.1186/s12877-021-02067-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Abdelhafid Benksim ◽

Rachid Ait Addi ◽

Elhassania Khalloufi ◽

Aziz Habibi ◽

Mohamed Cherkaoui

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Health Insurance ◽

Nutritional Status ◽

Statistical Significance ◽

Well Being ◽

Public Institution ◽

Subjective Well Being ◽

Number Of Children ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Nutritional Characteristics

Abstract Background As the world’s population ages and people live longer, it seems important to ensure that older people have a good quality of life and positive subjective well-being. The objective of this study is to determine socio-economic, health and nutritional characteristics of institutionalized and non-institutionalized elders in the province of Marrakech. Methods This study was conducted among 368 older adults in the province of Marrakech between March 2017 and June 2019. Of all participants, 180 older adults reside in a public institution and 188 of them live in their own homes. Data on health conditions, nutritional status, functional and socio-economic characteristics were collected. Data was analyzed using SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 16.0. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Results Institutionalized elders were illiterate (80.0%), had low incomes (95.5%), and unmarried (73.3%), they reported also no children (56.1%) and no health insurance (98.9%). Institutional residents suffered from malnutrition (22.2%), hearing impairments (35.6%) and severe edentulism (43.3%). There was no significant difference between both groups on daily activities and depression. A multivariate analysis identified a model with three significant variables associated with non-institutionalized elders: health insurance (P = 0.001; OR = 107.49), number of children (P = 0.001; OR = 1.74) and nutritional status (p = 0.001; OR = 3.853). Conclusions This study shows that the institutionalization of older adults is considerably induced by various factors such as nutritional problems, lack of health insurance and family structure. To mitigate the effects of this phenomenon, home care strategies and preventive actions should be implemented to delay the institutionalization of older adults and therefore keep them socially active in their own homes.

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Nutritional Status and Pressure Ulcers. Risk Assessment and Estimation in Older Adults

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society ◽

10.1111/jgs.12855 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 62 (6) ◽

pp. 1209-1210 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Vincenzo Malafarina ◽

Francisco Úriz-Otano ◽

Claudia Fernández-Catalán ◽

Dolores Tejedo-Flors

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Risk Assessment ◽

Nutritional Status ◽

Pressure Ulcers

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Nutritional status and physical activity level predict Timed Up and Go performance in Irish older adults

Proceedings of The Nutrition Society ◽

10.1017/s002966512100015x ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 80 (OCE1) ◽

Author(s):

M.L. O'Connell ◽

T. Coppinger ◽

J. Walton ◽

A.L. McCarthy

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Older Adults ◽

Nutritional Status ◽

Physical Activity Level ◽

Activity Level ◽

Timed Up And Go

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Rates of Cognitive and Functional Impairments in Older Adults Residing in a Continuing Care Senior Housing Community

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617721000163 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-12

Author(s):

Ryan Van Patten ◽

Zanjbeel Mahmood ◽

Tanya T. Nguyen ◽

Jacqueline E. Maye ◽

Ho-Cheol Kim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Functional Capacity ◽

Independent Living ◽

Visual Learning ◽

Cognitive Test ◽

Continuing Care ◽

Cognitive Screening ◽

Functional Impairments ◽

Senior Housing ◽

The Mean

Abstract Objective: The current cross-sectional study examined cognition and performance-based functional abilities in a continuing care senior housing community (CCSHC) that is comparable to other CCSHCs in the US with respect to residents’ demographic characteristics. Method: Participants were 110 older adult residents of the independent living unit. We assessed sociodemographics, mental health, neurocognitive functioning, and functional capacity. Results: Compared to normative samples, participants performed at or above expectations in terms of premorbid functioning, attention span and working memory, processing speed, timed set-shifting, inhibitory control, and confrontation naming. They performed below expectation in verbal fluency and verbal and visual learning and memory, with impairment rates [31.4% (>1 SD below the mean) and 18.49% (>1.5 SD below the mean)] well above the general population (16% and 7%, respectively). Within the cognitive test battery, two tests of delayed memory were most predictive of a global deficit score. Most cognitive test scores correlated with performance-based functional capacity. Conclusions: Overall, results suggest that a subset of older adults in the independent living sector of CCSHCs are cognitively and functionally impaired and are at risk for future dementia. Results also argue for the inclusion of memory tests in abbreviated screening batteries in this population. We suggest that CCSHCs implement regular cognitive screening procedures to identify and triage those older adults who could benefit from interventions and, potentially, a transition to a higher level of care.

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A High Masticatory Muscle Tone Predicts the Risk of Malnutrition and Frailty in Inpatient Older Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study

Gerontology ◽

10.1159/000516627 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-7

Author(s):

Yin-Hwa Shih ◽

Zhen-Rong Hong ◽

Shih-Min Hsia ◽

Shang-Yu Yang ◽

Tzong-Ming Shieh

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

At Risk ◽

Nutritional Status ◽

Masseter Muscle ◽

Muscle Tone ◽

Handgrip Strength ◽

Muscle Performance ◽

Masticatory Muscle ◽

Masticatory Performance ◽

Poor Nutritional Status

Introduction: The prevalence of malnutrition among inpatient older adults is as high as 20∼50%. Masticatory performance is known to affect the nutritional status of individuals. However, an objective measurement to reflect the real status of masticatory muscle performance is lacking at the bedside. Methods: This pilot study analyzed the masticatory performance using surface electromyography (sEMG) of masticatory muscles that measures both muscle strength and muscle tone at the bedside. The nutritional status was measured using the Mini Nutritional Assessment tool. The handgrip strength was measured using a hand dynamometer. The statistical data were analyzed using SPSS 25 software. Results: The data revealed that female inpatient older adults more frequently had substandard handgrip strength (p = 0.028), an at-risk and poor nutritional status (p = 0.005), and a higher masseter muscle tone (p = 0.024). Inpatient older adults with an at-risk and poor nutritional status had an older age (p = 0.016), lower handgrip strength (p = 0.001), and higher average masseter muscle tone (p = 0.01). A high masseter muscle tone predicted the risk of having an at-risk and poor nutritional status. The at-risk or poor nutritional status predicted having a substandard handgrip strength by 5-fold. Conclusions: A high masticatory muscle tone predicts malnutrition and frailty. Medical professionals should combat masticatory dysfunction-induced malnutrition by detecting masticatory muscle performance using sEMG and referring patients to dental professionals. Additionally, encouraging inpatient older adults to perform oral motor exercise is recommended.

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