Incidence and Predictors of Physical Inactivity Among Malaysian Community-Dwelling Older Persons

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of physical inactivity and identify the predictors for low physical activity among community-dwelling older persons living in Malaysia in 3 years follow-up. In this prospective study, physical activity levels were measured using the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly. The arbitrary cutoff for Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly in this study was ≤70.9 for low and >141 for high physical activity levels. Out of the 955 physically active participants at baseline, 555 of them (mean [SD] age 68.82 [4.92] years) were successfully followed up to 3 years. Cumulative incidence of being physically active was 21% with rate of 7 per 100 person-years. It was found that being older (<.001), from Malay ethnic group (<.05), smokers (<.01), having lower gait speed (<.001), and lower cognitive status (<.05) were predictors for physical inactivity among Malaysian community-dwelling older persons in 3 years follow-up. These factors should be taken into consideration when planning for intervention and promotion strategies to increase physical activity levels among Malaysian older persons.

Mediating role of cognitive status on performance in the two‐minute step test and its normative data among Malaysian community‐dwelling older persons

“…In our recent study, we found that the incidence of physical inactivity among older Malaysian was 21%. 21 In comparison, 2MST mean values reported among 1009 Nepalese and 57 Singaporean older persons ranged between 34.5 and 57.7 times and 54.5 AE 23.7 times, respectively. 22,23 These 2MST mean values from our neighboring countries are comparable to the results from our present study.…”

“…Other factors, such as lower levels of physical activity, 2,12 smoking behavior, larger waist circumference and a higher difference between maximal and resting heart rate, 20 could have also influenced the results. In our recent study, we found that the incidence of physical inactivity among older Malaysian was 21% 21 …”

Mapping the extent of the literature and psychometric properties for the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE) in community-dwelling older adults: A scoping review

“…Studies were published between 1993 13 and 2023. [26][27][28][29][30] The PASE was used in a variety of study 165 designs, including cross-sectional studies ( [47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59][60] Based on data availability, pooled means were created for the following clinical populations: cancer (n=2), 22,61 Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) (n=2), 62,63 cognitive impairment (n=6), 27, 64-68 Diabetes (n=3), [69][70][71] Osteoarthritis (n=12), 41, 72-82 and Parkinson's disease (PD) (n=10). [83][84][85][86][87][88][89][90][91][92] Forest plots for clinical populations are available in Additional file 1 Figure B6.…”