Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics associated with physical mobility in hospitalized aged individuals
Keywords:
Population Characteristics, Frail Elderly, Inpatients, Early Ambulation, Mobility LimitationAbstract
Objective: To analyze the relationship between sociodemographic/clinical characteristics and physical mobility decline in hospitalized aged individuals.
Method: A cross-sectional analytical study conducted between March 2022 and July 2023 with a probability sample comprised by 547 aged individuals at wards from a public hospital in southern Brazil. A questionnaire with sociodemographic variables, morbidities, physical frailty, delirium (Confusion Assessment Method) and physical mobility (Perme Score) was applied. Descriptive statistics and multiple linear models were used to verify associations between the independent variables and the Perme Score, adopting 5% significance. All the analyses were performed in R 4.2.2.
Results: Mobility decline was associated with age between 70 and 80 years old (p=0.007) and >80 years old (p<0.001), widowhood (p=0.005), physical frailty (p<0.001), dementia (p<0.001), delirium (p<0.001), cancer (p=0.041) and schizophrenia (p=0.045).
Conclusion: Mobility decline is related to aging and to modifiable factors, whose management during hospitalization can prevent or attenuate functional losses in aged individuals.
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