Seeman T E, Charpentier P A, Berkman L F, Tinetti M E, Guralnik J M, Albert M, Blazer D, Rowe J W
Department of Epidemiology and Health, Yale University School of Medicine.
J Gerontol. 1994 May;49(3):M97-108. doi: 10.1093/geronj/49.3.m97.
Performance-based measures of physical performance were examined for an older cohort of relatively high-functioning men and women. Relationships between baseline physical performance and sociodemographic and health status characteristics were also examined. Three-year pattern changes in performance are described, and sociodemographic and health status predictors of change are investigated.
A cohort of relatively high-functioning men and women, aged 70-79, was identified in 1988 by subsampling from three community-based studies on the basis of physical and cognitive function. Baseline in-home assessments included tests of physical performance and measurement of sociodemographic characteristics and health status. A summary measure of physical performance was developed from tests of balance, gait, lower body strength and coordination, and manual dexterity. In-home assessments were repeated at follow-up in 1991.
Better physical performance at baseline was more common among males, Whites, those reporting higher income and education, and those with fewer chronic conditions. In linear regression models, declines in performance were predicted by older age, lower income, higher education, relative weight and blood pressure, lower peak expiratory flow, prevalent diabetes and incident health conditions and hospitalizations during follow-up. Improvements in performance were also observed; the only significant association was with race (i.e., being Black).
Declines in physical performance within a high-functioning cohort are predictable from sociodemographic and health status characteristics. The patterns of both decline and improvement in performance observed in this cohort suggest that older age is not uniformly associated with declines, indicating the potential for effective interventions to promote more successful aging.
对一组功能相对较高的老年男性和女性进行了基于表现的身体机能测量。还研究了基线身体机能与社会人口统计学和健康状况特征之间的关系。描述了三年来机能的变化模式，并调查了机能变化的社会人口统计学和健康状况预测因素。
1988年，通过对三项基于社区的研究进行抽样，根据身体和认知功能确定了一组年龄在70 - 79岁、功能相对较高的男性和女性。基线家庭评估包括身体机能测试以及社会人口统计学特征和健康状况的测量。身体机能的综合测量指标是根据平衡、步态、下肢力量与协调性以及手部灵活性测试得出的。1991年随访时再次进行家庭评估。
基线时身体机能较好的情况在男性、白人、报告收入和教育程度较高的人群以及慢性病较少的人群中更为常见。在线性回归模型中，机能下降可由年龄较大、收入较低、教育程度较高、相对体重和血压、呼气峰值流量较低、患有糖尿病以及随访期间出现的健康状况和住院情况预测。也观察到了机能的改善；唯一显著的关联是与种族（即黑人）有关。
从社会人口统计学和健康状况特征可以预测功能较高队列中身体机能的下降。在该队列中观察到的机能下降和改善模式表明，年龄增长并不总是与机能下降相关，这表明有可能采取有效的干预措施来促进更成功的衰老。
