OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate the importance of measuring fatigue/energy levels in an elderly population, to indicate present and future accomplishment of Activites of Daily Living/Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (ADL/IADL) tasks. METHODS: Two years of a randomly sampled community-based 10 year longitudinal study (The Elderly Care Research Center Florida Retirement Study) on the elderly (mean age=81). Both self report and performance based health measurements were done. Fatigue was measured with the MOS-36 Vitality sub-scale. Other health status measures were the CES-D scale, the PANAS (affect), number of conditions, self assessed health, Range of Motion and the Tinetti Mobility Scale. The outcome was ADL/IADL task accomplishment. RESULTS: Concurrently fatigue was associated with both physical and psychosocial measurements. The strongest associations (over .40 and p<.001) were for depression (0.46), the PANAS positive (-0.43), the number of conditions (0.45), trouble with ADL/IADLs (0.51) self assessed health (-0.65) and the Tinetti Mobility Scale (-0.47). Prospectively, fatigue had a stronger association with ADL/IADL status two years later (0.50) than most other indicators measured at the same time, only current ADL/IADL status (0.67) was stronger. In multivarible logistic regression (any problems with ADL/IADL tasks two years later) fatigue remained statistically significant even after controlling for sociodemographics, psycho-social attributes, physical health indicators and current ADL/IADL status Odds Ratio=1.13 (1.04-1.24). CONCLUSIONS: Fatigue is representative of concurrent health status, and task performance. It also is an important predictor of the future ability to perform ADL/IADL tasks, even after controlling for sociodemographics and other health status indicators.
Learning Objectives: N/A
Keywords: Health Indices, Aging
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.