Elderly Health Journal
Volume:9 Issue: 1, Jun 2023

Given the high prevalence of poor sleep quality in late adulthood, older adults might be involved with different physical, mental and social consequences of this disorder. Current research was conducted to examine the association between sleep quality and cognitive function in community-dwelling older adults.

This cross-sectional study was carried out on 800 community-dwelling people aged ≥ 60 years living in Amirkola, North of Iran. The participants were selected by simple random sampling method. Mini-Mental State Examination, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) were used for data collection. Seven components of the sleep quality were categorized into the four groups (very good, relatively good, relatively poor, and very poor condition). The participants were divided into the two groups based on their cognitive function, and sleep quality was compared between these two groups. Mann-Whitney, Spearman's correlation analysis, Chi-square, Pearson's correlation test and Logistic regression analysis were used to analyze the collected data.

Mean PSQI score among the older adults with normal and abnormal cognitive function was 5.5 ± 3.2 and 5.8 ± 3.3, respectively (p = 0.508). Poor sleep quality was slightly more prevalent in the elderly with cognitive dysfunction (p = 0.775). Logistic regression analysis revealed age (adjusted OR = 1.06; 95% CI: 1.03-1.08; p < 0.001) and level of education (adjusted OR = 0.14; 95% CI: 0.09-0.20; p < 0.001) had a significant impact on cognitive function; PSQI score (p = 0.254), gender (p = 0.661), and administration of sleeping drugs  showed no significant effect (p = 0.081).

Among different components of sleep quality, a significant positive association was observed between the frequency of sleep disturbances with cognitive function in older adults; furthermore, older age and lower level of education showed a significant negative effect on cognitive function.

Older adults are the largest group of medication users in each society. Since medications act differently in seniors compared with younger patients, great considerations are required regarding the effects and side effects of medications in the older adults. The present study aimed to determine the status of medication use and its related factors among older adults in Kerman city, Iran.

In the cross-sectional study, 388 seniors were selected using multistage cluster sampling from the population covered by comprehensive health centers in Kerman in 2021. Demographic information questions (age, gender, education level, marital status, life status, substance abuse, income, and health insurance status), a question regarding medication usage status and a question regarding disease that the elderly are currently suffering from, Montreal Cognitive Assessment Questionnaire, Geriatric Depression Scale, and Sleep Disorder Questionnaire were used for data collection. The data were analyzed using SPSS software by running Chi-square and multiple logistic regression tests.

The average number of medications used per day was 4.59 and 53.5% of the participants used five or more medications concomitantly. Antihypertensive medications had the highest prevalence (64.3%) followed by anti-hyperlipidemic (43.6%) and Supplements (41.3%). A significant correlation was found between the participants' frequency of medication use and their gender, income, primary insomnia, and cognitive impairment (p < 0.001). However, medication use had no significant association with the senior's age, marital status, education level, living status, substance abuse, and health insurance (p < 0.05). The risk of polypharmacy was 2.15 times higher in the elderly women than men (p = 0.001) and 0.45 times higher in participants with depression than non-depressed seniors (p = 0.011).

The high prevalence of polypharmacy indicates an unfavorable status of medication use among older adults in Kerman. So, authorities are required to provide educational information about polypharmacy to aged groups.

The present study was an attempt to investigate the effect of a course of dynamic neuromuscular stabilization (DNS) exercises on balance and fear of falling in female elderly with a history of falling.

In this quasi-experimental study, 30 female elderly people with a history of falling based on entry and exit criteria were purposefully selected as a sample of study. Then, they were randomly assigned into two control and exercise groups. The variables related to static balance and dynamic balances were assessed by sharpened Romberg Test and Standing Up and Walking Test, respectively. Also, Falls Efficacy Scale International was used to measure the fear of falling. The exercise group performed DNS exercises for 8 weeks, 3 sessions, and 50 minutes per session. Data were analyzed by using paired t-test and analysis of covariance in SPSS24 software at the significant level of p < 0.05.

A significant difference between pretest and posttest in static balance with open eyes (p = 0.0001, t = -7.19), static balance with closed eyes (p = 0.0001, t = -8.02), dynamic balance (p = 0.0001, t = 6.49) and fear of falling (p = 0.0001, t = 7.29) in DNS exercise group. Also, there were significant differences between DNS and control groups in static balance with open eyes (p = 0.0001, F = -14.67), static balance with closed eyes (p = 0.0001, F = 14.002), dynamic balance (p = 0.0001, F = 20.12) and fear of falling (p = 0.006, F = 09.07).

It is recommended that therapists use dynamic neuromuscular stabilization exercises in female elderly to improve balance and reduce the fear of falling.

One of the most important topics in the field of movement behavior is the acquisition of movement sequences, which is an important part of every person's life and the basis of many intelligent human behaviors. The aim of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of errorfull and errorless training based on complexity in the acquisition, retention and transfer of a motor sequential task in elderly women with emphasis on processing needs.

This semi-experimental study was conducted on 30 healthy elderly women over 60 years of age that were selected and randomly allocated into errorless and errorful groups. Then, they performed a sequence motor task assigned by the Serial Reaction Time Task software in the three phases of acquisition, retention, and transfer. In order to analyze the data, ANOVA with repeated measures, Wilcoxon test, Mann-Whitney U test and the independent samples t-test were conducted.

A significant improvement was seen in the reaction time and the number of errors in both groups (p < 0.05). Also, the errorless group recorded a shorter reaction time than the errorful group in the acquisition, retention and transfer tests. However, the errorful group made fewer errors in the retention and transfer tests than the errorless group.

Errorfull and errorless training are effective on reaction time and amount of errors in the retention and transfer stages of a motor sequential task in elderly women.  However, It is suggested that trainers use errorfull training methods in motor sequential tasks in order to reduce the error rate and provide a more optimal learning environment.

Physical activity (PA) improves balance, walking, and muscle strength and reduces the prevalence of falls among the elderly. Fear of falling (FOF) is the most common fear among older adults and a major health problem among them. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the relationship between FOF and PA among older adults in Iran.

This cross-sectional study was conducted on 687 elderly people aged ≥ 60 years in Yazd province, Iran using cluster sampling method. The data collection tools were The Falls Efficacy Scale International and the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly. The data were analyzed by describing frequency distribution, Mann-Whitney, Spearman correlation tests and Hierarchical regression under SPSS software.

The mean score of FOF and PA were 27.08 ± 12.30 (range 16-64) and 86.87 ± 79.15 (range 0-494), respectively. There was an inverse significant correlation between PA and FOF(r = -0.304) and with increasing age, PA of the elderly decreases, and the FOF increases. Demographic variables (age, gender, living status, and retirement status) which were entered into the model in the first stage, predicted 10.9 % of the variance of PA (p < 0.001). In step 2, chronic diseases predicted 3.5 % which was statistically significant and in step 3, FOF also significantly predicted 2.8% of the variance of PA (p < 0.001).

The level of PA among older adults is very low, so it is very important to know the factors influencing that, to take action to prevent the occurrence of these factors, and also to eliminate them. Considering that demographic variables and FOF can predict changes in PA, therefore, it is possible to improve the PA of older adults by performing appropriate interventions on these issues.

Lack of knowledge about COVID-19 and increased use of social networks contributed to the spread of misinformation about the disease in society, harming older adults’ health. In this review, we define misinformation and its condition during the COVID-19 pandemic and provide an overview of the characteristics of older adults and the impact of misinformation on this demographic group.

Falls are a threat to the health of older adults and can reduce their ability to remain independent. Furthermore, fall is known as one of the geriatric syndromes and is more common in older people and about 20 to 40 percent of older people have reported a history of falling per year. It should be noted that fall or fear of falling causes immobility in the elderly and immobility is linked with various non-communicable diseases, geriatric syndromes development, and mortality in the long term. As a result, finding a cost-effective, safe, and proper approach to prevent, control, and even treat of falls is absolutely crucial. Regarding the exercise benefits in all ages especially in the elderly, we supposed that various types of exercise such as aerobic, balance, and resistance training with different intensities have variant advantages in these subjects. Therefore, in this review study, we investigated the charter of different types of exercise in preventing and controlling fall based on recent evidence, providing involved mechanisms, as well as the effects of exercises on fall-related risk factors.