Dataset Information

Objective measures of physical capability and subsequent health: a systematic review.

ABSTRACT:

Background

measures of physical capability may be predictive of subsequent health, but existing published studies have not been systematically reviewed. We hypothesised that weaker grip strength, slower walking speed and chair rising and shorter standing balance time, in community-dwelling populations, would be associated with higher subsequent risk of fracture, cognitive outcomes, cardiovascular disease, hospitalisation and institutionalisation.

Methods

studies were identified through systematic searches of the electronic databases MEDLINE and EMBASE (to May 2009). Reference lists of eligible papers were also manually searched.

Results

twenty-four papers had examined the associations between at least one physical capability measure and one of the outcomes. As the physical capability measures and outcomes had been assessed and categorised in different ways in different studies, and there were differences in the potential confounding factors taken into account, this made it impossible to pool results. There were more studies examining fractures than other outcomes, and grip strength and walking speed were the most commonly examined capability measures. Most studies found that weaker grip strength and slower walking speed were associated with increased risk of future fractures and cognitive decline, but residual confounding may explain results in some studies. Associations between physical capability levels and the other specified outcomes have not been tested widely.

Conclusions

there is some evidence to suggest that objective measures of physical capability may be predictors of subsequent health in older community-dwelling populations. Most hypothesised associations have not been studied sufficiently to draw definitive conclusions suggesting the need for further research.

SUBMITTER: Cooper R

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3000177 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Objective measures of physical capability and subsequent health: a systematic review.

Cooper Rachel R Kuh Diana D Cooper Cyrus C Gale Catharine R CR Lawlor Debbie A DA Matthews Fiona F Hardy Rebecca R

Age and ageing 20100915 1

<h4>Background</h4>measures of physical capability may be predictive of subsequent health, but existing published studies have not been systematically reviewed. We hypothesised that weaker grip strength, slower walking speed and chair rising and shorter standing balance time, in community-dwelling populations, would be associated with higher subsequent risk of fracture, cognitive outcomes, cardiovascular disease, hospitalisation and institutionalisation.<h4>Methods</h4>studies were identified th ...[more]

PMID: 20843964

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Project description:Maintaining high levels of daily activity and physical capability have been proposed as important constituents to promote healthy brain and cognitive aging. Studies investigating the associations between brain health and physical activity in late life have, however, mainly been based on self-reported data or measures designed for clinical populations. In the current study, we examined cross-sectional associations between physical activity, recorded by an ankle-positioned accelerometer for seven days, physical capability (grip strength, postural control, and walking speed), and neuroimaging based surrogate markers of brain health in 122 healthy older adults aged 65-88 years. We used a multimodal brain imaging approach offering complementary structural MRI based indicators of brain health: global white matter fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) based on diffusion tensor imaging, and subcortical and global brain age based on brain morphology inferred from T1-weighted MRI data. In addition, based on the results from the main analysis, follow-up regression analysis was performed to test for association between the volume of key subcortical regions of interest (hippocampus, caudate, thalamus and cerebellum) and daily steps, and a follow-up voxelwise analysis to test for associations between walking speed and FA across the white matter Tract-Based Spatial Statistics (TBSS) skeleton. The analyses revealed a significant association between global FA and walking speed, indicating higher white matter integrity in people with higher pace. Voxelwise analysis supported widespread significant associations. We also found a significant interaction between sex and subcortical brain age on number of daily steps, indicating younger-appearing brains in more physically active women, with no significant associations among men. These results provide insight into the intricate associations between different measures of brain and physical health in old age, and corroborate established public health advice promoting physical activity.

Project description:ObjectiveTo do a quantitative systematic review, including published and unpublished data, examining the associations between individual objective measures of physical capability (grip strength, walking speed, chair rising, and standing balance times) and mortality in community dwelling populations.DesignSystematic review and meta-analysis.Data sourcesRelevant studies published by May 2009 identified through literature searches using Embase (from 1980) and Medline (from 1950) and manual searching of reference lists; unpublished results were obtained from study investigators.Study selectionEligible observational studies were those done in community dwelling people of any age that examined the association of at least one of the specified measures of physical capability (grip strength, walking speed, chair rises, or standing balance) with mortality.Data synthesisEffect estimates obtained were pooled by using random effects meta-analysis models with heterogeneity between studies investigated.ResultsAlthough heterogeneity was detected, consistent evidence was found of associations between all four measures of physical capability and mortality; those people who performed less well in these tests were found to be at higher risk of all cause mortality. For example, the summary hazard ratio for mortality comparing the weakest with the strongest quarter of grip strength (14 studies, 53 476 participants) was 1.67 (95% confidence interval 1.45 to 1.93) after adjustment for age, sex, and body size (I(2)=84.0%, 95% confidence interval 74% to 90%; P from Q statistic <0.001). The summary hazard ratio for mortality comparing the slowest with the fastest quarter of walking speed (five studies, 14 692 participants) was 2.87 (2.22 to 3.72) (I(2)=25.2%, 0% to 70%; P=0.25) after similar adjustments. Whereas studies of the associations of walking speed, chair rising, and standing balance with mortality have only been done in older populations (average age over 70 years), the association of grip strength with mortality was also found in younger populations (five studies had an average age under 60 years).ConclusionsObjective measures of physical capability are predictors of all cause mortality in older community dwelling populations. Such measures may therefore provide useful tools for identifying older people at higher risk of death.

Project description:Background: Blood flow restriction or KAATSU exercise training is associated with greater muscle mass and strength increases than non-blood flow restriction equivalent exercise. Blood flow restriction exercise has been proposed as a possible alternative to more physically demanding exercise prescriptions (such as high-load/high-intensity resistance training) in a range of clinical and chronic disease populations. While the maintenance of muscle mass and size with reduced musculoskeletal tissue loading appeals in many of these physically impaired populations, there remains a disconnect between some of the desired clinical measures for chronic disease populations and those commonly measured in the literature examining blood flow restriction exercise. While strength does play a vital role in physical function, task-specific objective measures of physical function indicative of activities of daily living are often more clinically relevant and applicable for evaluating the success of medical and surgical interventions or monitoring age- and disease-related physical decline. Objective: To determine whether exercise interventions utilizing blood flow restriction are able to improve objective measures of physical function indicative of activities of daily living. Methods: A systematic search of Medline, Embase, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, and Springer identified 13 randomized control trials utilizing an exercise intervention combined with blood flow restriction, while measuring at least one objective measure of physical function. Participants were ≥18 years of age. Systematic review of the literature and quality assessment of the included studies used the Cochrane Collaboration's tool for assessing risk bias. Results: Data from 13 studies with a total of 332 participants showed blood flow restriction exercise, regardless of modality, most notably increased performance on the 30 s sit-to-stand and timed up and go tests, and generally improved physical function on other tests including walking tests, variations of sit-to-stand tests, and balance, jumping, and stepping tests. Conclusions: From the evidence available, blood flow restriction exercise of multiple modalities improved objective measures of physical function indicative of activities of daily living.

Dataset Information

Objective measures of physical capability and subsequent health: a systematic review.

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Objective measures of physical capability and subsequent health: a systematic review.

Similar Datasets

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