Environmental Components of Mobility Disability in Community-Living Older Persons

• Published in: Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (JAGS) Vol. 51; no. 3; pp. 393 - 398
• Main Authors: Shumway-Cook, Anne, Patla, Aftab, Stewart, Anita, Ferrucci, Luigi, Ciol, Marcia A., Guralnik, Jack M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston, MA, USA Blackwell Science Inc 01.03.2003; Blackwell; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Ageing; aging; Assisted living facilities; Biological and medical sciences; Cross-Sectional Studies; Disability; Disabled Persons; Elderly people; Environment; Environmental aspects; Female; Handicapped people; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Miscellaneous; Mobility; Motor Activity; Older people; Prevention and actions; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Walking; Human; Physical exercise; Disability; Health and environment; Body movement; Mobility; Autonomy; Elderly; Community; Social support
• ISSN: 0002-8614; 1532-5415
• DOI: 10.1046/j.1532-5415.2003.51114.x

OBJECTIVES:  To examine the relationship between characteristics of the physical environment and mobility disability in community‐living older persons. DESIGN:   Cross‐sectional study conducted on three groups of community‐dwelling older adults. SETTING:   Community‐dwelling older people in Seattle, Washington, and Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. PARTICIPANTS:   Fifty‐four older adults (≥70) were recruited from two geographic sites and grouped according to level of physical function (elite, physically able, physically disabled). MEASUREMENT:   Subjects reported on frequency of encounter versus avoidance of 24 features of the physical environment, grouped into eight dimensions, using a five‐point ordinal scale (never, rarely, sometimes, often, always). Never and rarely responses were combined and coded as not encountered or not avoided, whereas the sometimes, often or always responses were combined and coded as encountered or avoided. RESULTS:   Disabled older adults reported fewer encounters with and concomitantly greater avoidance of physical challenges to mobility than nondisabled older adults. However, both encounter and avoidance varied by environmental dimension. CONCLUSION:   Results support the hypothesis that mobility disability results from an interaction of individual and environmental factors. Mobility disability is associated with avoidance of some, but not all, physically challenging features within the environment, suggesting that some environmental features may disable community mobility more than others.