Journal
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN GERIATRICS SOCIETY
Volume 58, Issue 12, Pages 2363-2368Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2010.03155.x
Keywords
muscle power; exercise; rehabilitation; aging; aged
Categories
Funding
- Dennis W. Jahnigen Scholars Career Development Award
- American Geriatrics Society/Hartford Foundation
- National Institutes of Helath [K23AG019663-01A2]
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Harvard Medical School
Ask authors/readers for more resources
OBJECTIVES From among physiological attributes commonly targeted in rehabilitation, to identify those in which changes led to clinically meaningful differences (CMDs) in mobility outcomes. DESIGN Secondary analysis of data collected for a randomized controlled trial of exercise using binary outcomes defined by recording a large CMD (Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB)=1 unit; gait speed (GS)=0.1 m/s). Iterative models were performed to evaluate possible confounding between physiological variables and relevant covariates. SETTING Outpatient rehabilitation centers. PARTICIPANTS Community-dwelling mobility-limited older adults (n=116) participating in a 16-week randomized controlled trial of two modes of exercise. MEASUREMENTS Physiological measures included leg power, leg strength, balance as measured according to the Performance-Oriented Mobility Assessment (POMA), and rate pressure product at the maximal stage of an exercise tolerance test. Outcomes included GS and SPPB. Leg power and leg strength were measured using computerized pneumatic strength training equipment and recorded in Watts and Newtons, respectively. RESULTS Participants were 68% female, had a mean age of 75.2, a mean of 5.5 chronic conditions, and a baseline mean SPPB score of 8.7. After controlling for age, site, group assignment, and baseline outcome values, leg power was the only attribute in which changes were significantly associated with a large CMD in SPPB (odds ratio (OR)=1.48, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.09-2.02) and GS (OR=1.31, 95% CI=1.01-1.70). CONCLUSION Improvements in leg power, independent of strength, appear to make an important contribution to clinically meaningful improvements in SPPB and GS.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available