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Assessing Smart Phones for Generating Life-space Indicators.

ABSTRACT: Life-space is a promising method for estimating older adults' functional status. However, traditional life-space measures are costly and time consuming because they often rely on active subject participation. This study assesses the feasibility of using the global positioning system (GPS) function of smart phones to generate life-space indicators. We first evaluated the location accuracy of smart phone collected GPS points versus those acquired by a commercial GPS unit. We then assessed the specificity of the smart phone processed life-space information against the traditional diary method. Our results suggested comparable location accuracy between the smart phone and the standard GPS unit in most outdoor situations. In addition, the smart phone method revealed more comprehensive life-space information than the diary method, which leads to higher and more consistent life-space scores. We conclude that the smart phone method is more reliable than traditional methods for measuring life-space. Further improvements will be required to develop a robust application of this method that is suitable for health-related practices.

SUBMITTER: Wan N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5556372 | biostudies-other | 2013 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Project description:BACKGROUND:The purpose of this study was to examine the differences of timewise changes in life-space mobility between elderly people living alone and those living with others among community-dwelling elderly people from a day care facility with a rehabilitation service for seniors. METHODS:The present study used a longitudinal design with repeated measures every 3?months. In conformity with our inclusion criteria, this study included 233 community-dwelling elderly users of a day care facility with rehabilitation services for seniors in Japan. We analyzed the life-space assessment (LSA) scores collected at five time points (baseline, 3?months, 6?months, 9?months, and 12?months) using mixed-effects models with random intercepts and slopes over time. In the present study, the explanatory variables of interest were time, and living situation (living alone or with others). As possible confounders, we considered the following: (a) age, (b) sex, (c) social frailty, (d) physical frailty, (e) mild cognitive impairment (MCI), (f) depression, and (g) economic satisfaction. RESULTS:The mean age of participants was 78.9?years (SD?=?7.7), their mean LSA score was 60.1 points (SD?=?25.7), and 42.9% of the participants were men. After adjusting for age, gender, frailty, depression, MCI, and economic satisfaction, the mean LSA score of older adults who lived with others was significantly lower (7.42 points, 95%CI?=?-?18.30 to -?0.15, p?=?0.048) than that older adults who lived alone. DISCUSSION:Community-dwelling older adults who used a day care center with rehabilitation services and lived with others had a smaller life-space at baseline than those who lived alone. This suggests that there is a need to pay more attention to social frailty among both older adults who live alone and those who live with others. CONCLUSIONS:According to a multilevel analysis growth model, elderly persons who lived with others had significantly lower life-space mobility than those who lived alone.

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Assessing Smart Phones for Generating Life-space Indicators.

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