scholarly journals A Pilot Study to Validate a Wearable Inertial Sensor for Gait Assessment in Older Adults with Falls

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (13) ◽  
pp. 4334
Author(s):  
Guillermo García-Villamil ◽  
Marta Neira-Álvarez ◽  
Elisabet Huertas-Hoyas ◽  
Antonio Ramón-Jiménez ◽  
Cristina Rodríguez-Sánchez

The high prevalence of falls and the enormous impact they have on the elderly population is a cause for concern. We aimed to develop a walking-monitor gait pattern (G-STRIDE) for older adults based on a 6-axis inertial measurement (IMU) with the application of pedestrian dead reckoning algorithms and tested its structural and clinical validity. A cross-sectional case–control study was conducted with 21 participants (11 fallers and 10 non-fallers). We measured gait using an IMU attached to the foot while participants walked around different grounds (indoor flooring, outdoor floor, asphalt, etc.). The G-STRIDE consisted of a portable inertial device that monitored the gait pattern and a mobile app for telematic clinical analysis. G-STRIDE made it possible to measure gait parameters under normal living conditions when walking without assessing the patient in the outpatient clinic. Moreover, we verified concurrent validity with convectional outcome measures using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and analyzed the differences between participants. G-STRIDE showed high estimation accuracy for the walking speed of the elderly and good concurrent validity compared to conventional measures (ICC = 0.69; p < 0.000). In conclusion, the developed inertial-based G-STRIDE can accurately classify older people with risk to fall with a significance as high as using traditional but more subjective clinical methods (gait speed, Timed Up and Go Test).

Author(s):  
Iasmim Batista Correia ◽  
Nathalie De Almeida Silva ◽  
Paulo Granges e Silva ◽  
Tarciana Nobre de Menezes

Aging leads to psychological losses and various physical changes that, associated with body-stereotyped patterns imposed by society, can cause disturbances in the body image perception (BIP) in the elderly. The aim of this study was to evaluate BIP in older adults living in the city of Campina Grande / PB and its relationship with different anthropometric and body composition indicators. This cross-sectional study was carried out with older adults of both sexes enrolled in the Family Health Strategy of Campina Grande, PB. BIP was considered as a dependent variable and body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), triceps skinfold (TSF), and arm fat area (AFA) as independent variables. The association between BIP and anthropometric indicators was verified using the Pearson chi-square test (X²), simple and multiple logistic regression, with significance level of p <0.05. Overall, 420 older adults were interviewed (68.1% women), of whom 409 reported their actual body image perception. Regarding the perception of idealized body image, 11 individuals did not respond and 230 were satisfied, since 179 desired another silhouette. Individuals with BMI indicative of overweight / obesity were more likely of showing body image dissatisfaction compared to those with normal weight. Subjects with excessive TSF showed greater body image dissatisfaction in relation to those with normal weight. Women were more likely of showing body image dissatisfaction. Thus, it was observed that variables BMI, TSF and sex were independently associated with body image satisfaction.


Stroke ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mekala R Raman ◽  
Jonathan Graff-Radford ◽  
Scott A Przybelski ◽  
Timothy G Lesnick ◽  
Michelle M Mielke ◽  
...  

Hypertension is highly prevalent in the elderly population and microinfarcts are the most common vascular brain pathology identified in older adults at autopsy. We investigated the associations between systolic and diastolic blood pressures measured antemortem and the presence of microinfarcts at autopsy. Study subjects (n=302; age range=71-95) were participants in the population-based Mayo Clinic Study of Aging autopsy study, who had blood pressure measurements recorded during life. We investigated both cross-sectional systolic and diastolic blood pressure measurements at the baseline visit and the change in blood pressure (slope). Presence and location (subcortical or cortical) of chronic microinfarcts was abstracted from the autopsy reports. Of the 302 study subjects, 47 (16%) had cerebral microinfarcts, and, of those, 18 (38%) had subcortical microinfarcts and 29 (62%) had only cortical microinfarcts. The baseline blood pressures were not different between subjects with no microinfarcts, subcortical microinfarcts, and only cortical microinfarcts. In a logistic regression model including time between last blood pressure measurement and death, a greater decline in systolic [OR= 1.06 (1.01, 1.11); p=0.02]) and greater decline in diastolic [OR= 1.11 (1.02, 1.20); p=0.01] blood pressures were predictors of the presence of subcortical microinfarcts at autopsy. However, these variables were not associated with the presence of cortical microinfarcts. In conclusion, microinfarcts are common in the older adult population, and most of them are located in the cortex. A greater decline in both systolic and diastolic blood pressures and their association with subcortical microinfarcts, but not with cortical microinfarcts, may have implications for aggressive lowering of blood pressure in the elderly population.


2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 231-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Luísa Moreira dos Santos ◽  
Teresa Maria de Serpa Pinto Freitas do Amaral ◽  
Nuno Pedro Garcia Fernandes Bento Borges

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence of undernutrition in older adults aged >75 years living in communities and to identify the main factors independently associated with undernutrition. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a random sample of family physicians' medical records of 86 older adults aged >75 years living in the community studied. Their nutritional status was evaluated using the Mini Nutritional Assessment. RESULTS: A total of 10.5% of the elderly were undernourished and 41.9% were at undernutrition risk. According to the logistic regression multivariable model, the following characteristics: being widowed (OR=6.7; 95%CI=1.8-24.6); being institutionalized (OR=12.6; 95%CI=1.7-90.5); or having a negative self-perception of health (OR=15.0; 95%CI=3.3-69.1) were independently associated with a significant increase of undernutrition risk. CONCLUSION: The current study shows that undernutrition is highly prevalent in Portuguese older adults aged >75 years living in communities. The major factors independently associated with their undernutrition are being widowed and institutionalized and having negative self-perception of health. The results obtained show that undernutrition and its associated factors are very serious problems for older adults and a challenge in their health care.


Author(s):  
Divyanshu Raheja ◽  
Evelyn Davila ◽  
Eric Johnson ◽  
Rijalda Deović ◽  
Michele Paine ◽  
...  

The purpose of this study is to understand among a convenience sample of 400 adults aged 60 years of age or older (1) reasons for being willing or unwilling to participate in a vaccine clinical research study and (2) overall perceptions about vaccine clinical research. A cross-sectional study using a sample of older adults residing in the metro-Atlanta area and surrounding neighborhoods was conducted. The study questionnaire contained 37 questions, including questions about socio-demographics and perceptions about clinical trial processes. Statistical analysis was conducted using logistic regression. The adjusted modeling results indicated that sex, distance to research clinic, and being informed about the research findings played a role in the likelihood of an elderly person participating in a vaccine study. Males were more likely to participate in clinical trials as compared to females (OR: 2.486; CI: 1.042–5.934). Most participants were willing to travel up to 25 miles from the research clinic. Of the respondents, 45% were unlikely to participate if the results of the current trial are not shared. Improving access to clinical trials in terms of distance traveled and ensuring streamlined processes to inform participants about the results of the trial in the future would increase willingness to participate in vaccine clinical trials. The survey could serve as a useful tool for conducting vaccine studies and other clinical trials by understanding the barriers specific to the elderly.


Author(s):  
Saleh Habibi ◽  
Arefeh Babazadeh ◽  
Soheil Ebrahimpour ◽  
Parisa Sabbagh ◽  
Mehran Shokri

Abstract Morbidity and mortality are higher in older adults with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) than in other age groups. Also, CAP in older adults has various clinical manifestations with other. A higher mortality rate in the elderly with CAP may contribute to a delay in management. Consequently, the purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical and laboratory manifestations of CAP in the elderly. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 221 elderly patients with CAP who were admitted to Ayatollah Rouhani Hospital, in Babol, northern of Iran, in 2017-2019. Patient outcomes included 170 cases that recovered from CAP, and 51 cases that died of complications. Patients were evaluated in terms of their clinical and laboratory manifestations. The most common symptoms of pneumonia were cough (79.6%), sputum (73.8%), weakness (72.9%), fever (56%), dyspnea (46.2%). The most frequent underlying disease was ischemic heart disease (43.9%). In our study, clinical and laboratory characteristics in older patients with CAP were evaluated and compared with other studies confirming past findings, but there were differences in some cases, such as vital signs, gastrointestinal symptoms, and disturbance of the level of consciousness. Therefore, it recommends carefully taking the patients’ initial histories and accurately recording their clinical and laboratory symptoms.


2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Koren L. Fisher ◽  
Elizabeth L. Harrison ◽  
Brenda G. Bruner ◽  
Joshua A. Lawson ◽  
Bruce A. Reeder ◽  
...  

The purpose of this study was to explore cross-sectional relationships between self-reported physical activity (PA) and personal, social, and environmental factors in community-dwelling adults aged 50 years and older. Accounting for clustering by neighborhood, generalized estimating equations were used to examine associations between selected correlates and the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE) score while adjusting for confounders. Data for 601 participants were analyzed: 79% female, 37% married, mean age 76.8 (± 8.7) years, mean PASE score 112.6 (± 64.8). Age, living in seniors’ housing, using nursing/home care services, receiving encouragement to be active, and having benches available in the neighborhood were inversely associated with PASE. Self-efficacy, SF-12 score, PA barriers, social support, and the presence of trails showed positive associations. Several personal, social, and environmental factors associated with PA were identified. The inverse association between PA and living in seniors’ housing units should be considered when developing PA programs for older adults.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamid Allahverdipour ◽  
Iman Dianat ◽  
Galavizh Mameh ◽  
mohammad Asghari Jafarabadi

Abstract Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of cognitive and physical loads on dynamic and static balance of older adults under single, dual and multi-task conditions. Methods: The effects of single versus combined (dual-task and multi-task) cognitive (to speak out the name of the weekdays in a reverse order) and physical (with three levels including handling weights of 1kg, 2kg and 3kg in each hand) loads on dynamic and static balance of 42 older adults (21 males and 21 females), aged ≥ 60 years were studied. Dynamic and static balance measures were evaluated using the Timed Up and Go (TUG) and stabilometer (sway index) tests, respectively. Results: The TUG speed of female participants was generally slower than that of male participants. Cognitive task influenced the participants’ dynamic balance during the dual-task conditions, while the static balance was not affected in this phase. The dynamic and static balance measures were more influenced when performing the multi-tasks than when doing the dual-tasks. The effects of various levels of physical demand on the dynamic balance varied greatly under dual- and multi-task conditions. Conclusions: The findings add to the understanding of the factors influencing the elderly balance and control under cognitive and physical functioning.


2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (9) ◽  
pp. 030006052095689
Author(s):  
Saad M. Bindawas ◽  
Vishal Vennu ◽  
Ayidh M. Alqarni ◽  
Tariq A. Abdulrahman

Objective To assess physical performance (PP) and physical activity (PA) among older adults visiting primary healthcare centres (PHCCs) in Riyadh. Methods In this cross-sectional study, men and women (n = 74) aged ≥60 years were recruited from five PHCCs across Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, between 19 February and 6 August 2017. The Timed Up & Go test was used to assess PP. Self-reported PA was assessed using the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly. Means and standard deviations were used to describe PP and PA scores across genders. A two-tailed independent samples t-test was used to estimate mean differences (MD) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) between genders. Results Men scored significantly lower than women on PP (MD: 2.11, 95% CI: 0.59 to 3.64) and PA (MD: −46.1, 95% CI: −80.96 to −11.25). Significant gender differences were observed for leisure time activities (MD: 17.35, 95% CI: 3.29 to 31.40), light household activities (MD: –10.86, 95% CI: –16.19 to –5.53) and heavy household activities (MD: –6.48, 95% CI: –11.73 to –1.23). Conclusions Men show significantly lower PP and PA than women. There are gender differences in leisure time activities and in light and heavy household activities.


2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 239-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Li ◽  
Le Cai ◽  
Wen-long Cui ◽  
Xu-ming Wang ◽  
Hui-fang Li ◽  
...  

Abstract Background This study estimates the prevalence of five chronic non-communicable disease (NCDs) (hypertension, diabetes, CHD, COPD and stroke) and its multimorbidity, and examines the relationship between SES and lifestyle factors and multimorbidity among older adults in rural southwest China. Methods A cross-sectional survey of 4833 consenting adults aged ≥60 years was conducted in 2017. Data on the demographics, smoking, drinking, height, weight, blood pressure and fasting blood glucose were collected. Results Among the participants, the overall prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, stroke, COPD and CHD was 50.6, 10.2, 6.4, 5.4 and 5.5%, respectively, and of multimorbidity was 16.1%. Females had a higher prevalence of hypertension, diabetes and multimorbidity of chronic NCDs, but a lower prevalence of COPD than males (P &lt; 0.05). Older adults with good household assets and access to medical services were less likely to experience multimorbidity, whereas obese and centrally obese participants, current smokers, current drinkers and those with a family history of chronic NCDs had a greater probability of multimorbidity. Conclusions The findings suggest that effective strategies for prevention and control of chronic NCDs and its multimorbidity are urgently needed, especially for low-income, elderly, ethnic minority adults with poor access to medical services.


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