Lead Researcher, Hygiene and Public Health Unit, Department of Cardiovascular Medicine and Public Health, University of Padua, Padua, Italy.
Statistician, Hygiene and Public Health Unit, Department of Cardiovascular Medicine and Public Health, University of Padua, Padua, Italy.
Br J Community Nurs. 2021 Mar 2;26(3):144-149. doi: 10.12968/bjcn.2021.26.3.144.
Deterioration of physical and functional capacities is often seen in nursing homes. The present study aimed at assessing the effectiveness of an individually tailored physical exercise intervention on mobility and functional decline in nursing home residents in a 1-year follow-up period. Information on gender, age, education, profession and cognitive status was collected at baseline and at 6 and 12 months of the intervention. The decline in functional capacity and mobility was assessed using the Barthel index. Some 221 participants were included. Results from the multivariate logistic regression showed how residents who never participated in physical activities had a five-fold higher risk of mobility decline compared with residents who did engage for the whole follow-up time. A lower effect was seen in residents who participated for only 6 months. Although dementia appeared to be a significant predictor of decline, a substantial stabilisation in mobility capacity was noted in patients with both mild and severe dementia performing exercise. The findings suggest that preventing or slowing physical decline in nursing home residents is an achievable goal, and even those with a higher degree of cognitive decline may benefit from a tailored physical activity plan.
养老院中经常会出现身体和功能能力下降的情况。本研究旨在评估在 1 年的随访期间，针对养老院居民进行个体化量身定制的体育锻炼干预对其活动能力和功能下降的效果。在基线和干预的 6 个月和 12 个月时，收集了有关性别、年龄、教育、职业和认知状态的信息。使用 Barthel 指数评估了功能能力和活动能力的下降情况。共纳入了 221 名参与者。多变量逻辑回归的结果表明，与整个随访期间都进行锻炼的居民相比，从不参加体育活动的居民活动能力下降的风险高 5 倍。仅参加 6 个月的居民的效果较低。尽管痴呆症似乎是下降的一个重要预测因素，但在进行运动的轻度和重度痴呆症患者中，其活动能力明显稳定。研究结果表明，预防或减缓养老院居民的身体下降是可以实现的目标，即使是认知能力下降程度较高的患者也可能受益于个体化的身体活动计划。
