Associations between physical strength, cerebral function and mental health in independent-living elderly Japanese women

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the physical strength, cerebral function, and mental health conditions in elderly persons, and to examine the correlation between these functions.Methods: The subjects were 151 independent-living elderly Japanese women, mean age 70 +/ 5 years (+/ SD; range, 60 to 80 years), with normal abilities in daily life. The health check-up was conducted from April to May 1997. Physical strength was estimated by measuring seven activities. Cerebral functions were assessed by six sub-tests of the General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB). Their mental health status was measured by four sub-scales of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ)-28.Results: The physical strength and almost all of the cerebral functions decreased with age. Social dysfunction and severe depression on the GHQ sub-scales also worsened with age. Physical strength was strongly correlated with cerebral functions after adjusting for the confounding effect of aging. There were also interrelations between physical strength and mental health.Conclusions: This study provided important information on the correlation between physical and mental status in elderly women. Future longitudinal studies with the intervention of physical training are required to determine whether a causal relationship exists between these factors.

Indicators and Instruments to Assess Components of Disability in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Systematic Review

“…After discussion, an agreement was reached, or a consensus was established with the third author. After the full-text reading and analysis of the 136 full texts, 49 studies were included in the final analysis [ 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 ].…”

“…Sample sizes ranged from 24 [ 58 ] to 10 092 [ 60 ] older adults, whereas the average of the 49 studies was 1030 participants. Six studies gathered samples which included 100% of older adult women [ 34 , 45 , 55 , 64 , 68 , 73 ], and one study sampled only men [ 66 ]; the percentage of women in the study samples was between 47% [ 76 ] and 81.4% [ 70 ]. Among the studies that identified the age range, an interval between 60 and 105 years was reported, with a minimal sample-age average of 67.4 years [ 41 ] and a maximal of 80 years [ 79 ].…”

“…Indicators assessed by objective measures included the Body Structures, Body Functions, and Environmental Factors. The indicator handgrip strength was used in nine studies [ 44 , 45 , 51 , 55 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 66 , 67 ], and in eight it presented a statistical association with age, see Tables S1 and S2 [ 44 , 45 , 51 , 55 , 59 , 60 , 66 , 67 ], and from these only six are of good quality, see Table 1 [ 44 , 51 , 59 , 60 , 66 , 67 ]. This was the indicator that was most frequently identified as having an association with age and has been objectively assessed with an hydraulic or digital dynamometer.…”

“…These measures, along with cognitive function, were the most frequent disability assessment indicators used and identified as having an association with age in community-dwelling older adults in the included studies. In contrast with the handgrip strength assessment, that was performed in all included studies that identified the association with age by dynamometry [ 44 , 45 , 51 , 55 , 59 , 60 , 66 , 67 ], gait speed was assessed by different instruments such as the walk test [ 34 , 51 , 60 , 67 , 71 , 73 ], the Timed up and go [ 34 , 47 , 68 ], and the 8-foot timed walk [ 48 ]. Moreover, gait speed was evaluated only using instrumentalization in one study [ 71 ].…”

Effects of weight-bearing dance aerobics on lower limb muscle morphology, strength and functional fitness in older women

“…Previous studies have shown that patients unable to sustain one-legged balance for 5 s with their eyes closed are 2.1 times more likely to fall than those who can maintain balance for more than 5 s ( Vellas et al, 1997 ). Additionally, the time spent on SCST was negatively correlated with somatic symptoms and anxiety/insomnia ( Hayashi et al, 2002 ). The SCST can enhance the arterial resilience of the supporting leg ( Zhou et al, 2022 ), thereby fostering cardiovascular well-being and preventing cardiovascular diseases in older women.…”