Physical Function Assessment of Older Veterans With Serious Mental Illness

Objective: To characterize the physical function of older veterans with serious mental illness (SMI) across endurance, strength, and mobility domains. Design: Retrospective analysis of clinical performance data. Setting: Gerofit pro-gram, a national outpatient supervised exercise program for older veterans, delivered in Veterans Health Administration sites. Participants: Older veterans aged 60 and older (n = 166 with SMI, n = 1,441 without SMI) enrolled across eight national Gerofit sites between 2010 and 2019. Measurements: Performance measures of physical function covering endurance (6-minute walk test), strength (chair stands, arm curls), and mobility (10-m walk, 8-foot-up-and-go), were administered at Gerofit enrollment. Baseline data from these measures were analyzed to characterize the functional profiles of older veterans with SMI. One sample t tests were examined to compare functional performance of older veterans with SMI to age-and sex-based reference scores. Propensity score matching (1:3) and linear mixed effects models were used to evaluate differences in function between veterans with and without SMI. Results: Older veterans with SMI performed worse on all measures of function (chair stands, arm curls, 10-m walk, 6-minute walk test, 8-foot-up-and-go) compared to age-and sex-based reference scores with statistically significant differences present in the male sample. Functional performance of those with SMI was also worse compared to propensity-score matched older veterans without SMI with statistically significant differences on chair stands, 6-minute walk test, and 10-m walk. Conclusion: Older veterans with SMI have compromised strength, mobility, and endurance. Physical function should be a core component of screening and treatment for this population.

Automated summary

This study aimed to characterize the physical function of older veterans with serious mental illness (SMI) across endurance, strength, and mobility domains. The results showed that older veterans with SMI performed worse on all measures of function compared to reference scores, with statistically significant differences present in the male sample. The functional performance of those with SMI was also worse compared to propensity-score matched older veterans without SMI, with statistically significant differences on chair stands, 6-minute walk test, and 10-m walk. These findings highlight the compromised physical function in older veterans with SMI and emphasize the importance of physical function as a core component in screening and treatment for this population.