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Background: Older women with low back pain (LBP) constitute a special subpopulation at risk of severe and permanent disability. It is important to identify factors limiting functionality in this population in order to reduce costs and improve both prevention and intervention. Handgrip strength (HGS) is a biomarker of aging associated with several adverse health outcomes, but long-term associations with disability in older patients with LBP are not known.Objective: To examine whether HGS predicts disability in older women with acute low back pain (LBP).Methods: Longitudinal analyses were conducted with a sample of 135 older women from the international multicenter study Back Complaints in the Elders (BACE-Brazil). Women aged 60 years and over with a new episode of acute LBP were included. HGS was assessed with Jamar® dynamometer, and disability was assessed using the Roland Morris questionnaire and gait speed test. Variables were assessed at baseline and at 12-month follow-up. Linear regression models explored associations between HGS and disability measures.Results: Significant association was found between HGS at baseline and gait speed at 12-month follow-up (r=-0.24; p=0.004). A multivariable-adjusted model showed that this association was independent of age, body mass index, and pain intensity (adjusted R2=0.13; p<0.001). A final prediction model showed an incremental difference of only 2.1% in gait speed after inclusion of HGS as an independent variable. No association was found between HGS and score on the Roland Morris questionnaire.Conclusion: Caution is needed regarding the use of HGS as a predictive measure of disability in older women with acute LBP. Changes in gait speed were very small and unlikely to be of clinical relevance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective This cross-sectional community-based epidemiologic survey aimed to investigate the prevalence of cognitive and functional impairment (CFI) and its distribution in relation to socio-demographic and clinical factors in an older community sample in Florianópolis, Brazil. Materials and methods The population was a representative sample aged 60 and older; the cluster sample strategy was performed. CFI, a syndromic category that does not exclude dementia, was defined according to the combination of low MMSE (Mini-Mental State Examination) score and moderate/severe dependence in a scale that measured activities of daily living. The data were submitted to multiple regression analysis using the Poisson regression method. Results A sample of 1705 subjects was interviewed; the mean age was 70.6 years (60–104 years; SD: 8.0); 63.9% were female and 43.7% had up to 4 years of schooling. CFI was detected in 325 subjects, resulting in a raw prevalence of 19.2% (95% CI: 17.3–21.0). Older age, presence of diabetes, heart disease, stroke, urinary incontinence, arthritis, frequent pain and depression were significantly associated with CFI (p < 0.05). Conclusion In addition to the diversity of factors associated with CFI, the present study indicated the need to investigate the role of frequent pain in the development and progression of cognitive impairment and dementia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Inflammation and cytokine production are a common finding in aging, which probably exert influence on cognitive and functional abilities in elderly people. Transforming-growth-factor beta 1 (TGF-β1) is an important multifunctional anti-inflammatory cytokine that displays immunomodulatory activities.Objective: This prospective investigation aimed to evaluate the TGF-β1 codon 10 T>C on functional and cognitive decline in subjects aged 75+ years.Methods: The Functional Activities Questionnaire evaluated the functional performance and the cognitive assessment was evaluated through brief cognitive tests, consisting of: the Mini-Mental State Examination, animal category fluency test, and picture drawings memory test. All tests were administered twice, with a one-year interval.Results: Carriers of Tlower allele showed significant short-term decline in cognitive and functional performance, while individuals with CChigher genotype of TGF-β1 codon 10 T>C remained stable or showed improvement.Conclusion: Our findings indicate that the lower production of TGF-β1 could predict a longitudinal functional and cognitive decline in oldest-old individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity (SO) are geriatric conditions well known to be associated with negative outcomes in the elderly. However, its association with functional capacity needs to be further investigated. The purpose of the study was to verify the association among muscle strength, sarcopenia and SO with functional performance in older women. 137 women (67.76±5.67 years; 64.63±10.79 kg; 154.13±0.06 cm) underwent body composition evaluation through DXA. Functional performance was evaluated by tests as chair stand, Timed Up & Go, Arm Curl, and 6-Minute Walk. Muscle strength was evaluated with isokinetic dynamometry and hand grip strength. The prevalence of sarcopenia and SO were 13.9% and 23.4%, respectively. None of the functional variables differed according to sarcopenia classifications. Although volunteers classified as SO presented higher body fat percentage and lower fat-free mass, there was no difference compared to the functional tests. Conversely, both muscle strength measurements (i.e., knee extensors isokinetic and hand grip) were significantly associated to the functional tests. In summary, there was no association between the evaluated classifications of sarcopenia and SO with functional capacity. Nevertheless, muscle strength presented a significant and positive relationship with the functional tests in older women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objective: To examine the association between depressive symptoms and functional status in elderly people living in an urban center in northeastern Brazil. Methods: In this cross-sectional, observational, analytic study, 313 community-dwelling elderly (age≥65 years) individuals of both sexes who resided in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, were evaluated. The Brazilian version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale was used to screen for depressive symptoms. Physical performance was assessed using the Short Physical Performance Battery. A multivariate linear regression model adjusted for clinical and socioeconomic variables was used to analyze the association between depressive symptoms and functional performance. Results: Our findings showed that the presence of depressive symptoms influenced functional performance, even when analyses controlled for variables such as age, sex, poor perceived health, cognitive status, and body mass index (BMI). Conclusion: The results of this study reinforce the association between depressive symptoms and functional performance in an elderly population in an urban center in northeastern Brazil. These findings provide useful information for the identification of potential targets for research and therapeutic interventions aimed at preventing a decline in mobility in elderly individuals. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objectives: To compare and investigate the relationships between Q-angle values and measures of pain, muscular, and functional performances. Methods: Measures of Q-angles, pain, and muscular and functional performances were obtained in 30 elderly women with bilateral knee osteoarthritis. Pearson correlation coefficients were employed to evaluate relationships between the assessed variables (P < .05). Results: Lower Q-angle values were found in the most symptomatic knee, but no statistically significant correlations were found between the Q-angle and the other evaluated measures. Conclusions: Lower Q-angle values were found on the most symptomatic knee and they were not associated with pain, muscular, or functional performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Frailty syndrome in elderly people is characterized by a reduction of energy reserves and also by a decreased of resistance to stressors, resulting in an increase of vulnerability. Objective: The aim of this study was to verify the effect of a muscle-strengthening program with load in pre-frail elder women with regards to the functional capacity, knee extensor muscle strength and their correlation. Methods: Thirty-two pre-frail community-dwelling women participated in this study. Potential participants with cognitive impairment (MEEM), lower extremities orthopedic surgery, fractures, inability to walk unaided, neurological diseases, acute inflammatory disease, tumor growth, regular physical activity and current use of immunomodulators were excluded. All participants were evaluated by a blinded assessor using: Timed up and go (TUG), 10-Meter Walk Test (10MWT) and knee extensor muscle strength (Byodex System 3 Pro® isokinetic dynamometer at angular speeds of 60 and 180°/s). The intervention consisted of strengthening exercises of the lower extremities at 70% of 1RM, three times/ week for ten weeks. The statistical analysis was performed using the ANOVA and Spearman tests. Results: After the intervention, it was observed statistical significance on the work at 180°/s (F=12.71, p=0.02), on the power at 180°/s (F=15.40, p=0.02) and on the functional capacity (TUG, F=9.54, p=0.01; TC10, F=3.80, p=0.01). There was a good negative and statistically significant correlation between the TUG and work at 60°/s, such as the TUG and work at 180°/s (r=-0.65, p=0.01; r=-0.72, p=0.01). Conclusion: The intervention improved the muscular power and the functional capacity. The increase of the power correlated with function, which is an important variable of the quality of life in the pre-frail elders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, half of the world population resides in cities. The percentage of world population that is elderly is expected to double from 11% to 22% by 2050 and will be concentrated in urban areas of developing countries. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the functional status of elderly who live in the Belo Horizonte Metropolitan Area, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) was employed as the theoretical model. Probabilistic sampling was used to select 1,611 elderly persons (defined as >/=60 years) for the study. The response variable "functional performance" was developed by counting the number of basic and instrumental activities of daily living (ADL) that subjects found difficult to carry out. A zero-inflated negative binomial (ZINB) regression model was fitted to the data. The prevalence of disability was 47.1%. Neighborhood self-perception revealed that 84.0% of the elderly were satisfied with their neighborhood, although only 18.4% trusted people around them. Concerns about walking around the neighborhood were: fear of being robbed (78.0%) and fear of falling due to sidewalk defects (48.2%), which caused a 62% increase in the number of ADL carried out with difficulty. It is well known that there is a continuous tendency for functional results to improve as the frequency of walking increases. Thus, urban infrastructure interventions, such as improving public sidewalks, might influence the frequency of elderlies walking in their neighborhoods. Making walking possible-or even pleasant-could increase their social participation and use of services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]