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Changes in life-space mobility and quality of life among community-dwelling older people: a 2-year follow-up study

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Abstract

Purpose

Life-space mobility refers to the spatial area in which a person moves in daily life, taking into account distance, frequency and assistance needed. The aim was to examine how changes in life-space mobility are associated with changes in quality of life (QOL) over a 2-year period.

Methods

Community-dwelling people aged 75–90 years (n = 848) were interviewed face-to-face in their homes and followed up annually for 2 years. QOL was assessed with the short version of the World Health Organization QOL assessment (range 0–130, higher scores indicate better QOL). Life-space mobility was assessed with the Life-Space Assessment (range 0–120, higher scores indicate better life-space mobility). Lower extremity performance was objectively measured with the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB). Cognitive impairment was assessed using the Mini-Mental State Examination. Chronic conditions and years of education were self-reported. Data were analyzed with generalized estimation equation models.

Results

The mean life-space score at baseline was 63.9 ± SD 20.6 and mean QOL score 100.3 ± 11.8. Over the follow-up, the QOL score decreased to 95.0 ± 13.8 across the total study sample. The decrease in QOL score was somewhat higher among those whose life-space mobility score declined >10 points during the follow-up compared to those whose life-space remained stable or improved, even after adjustment for age, gender, number of chronic conditions, cognitive impairment, SPPB and education.

Conclusions

Decline in life-space mobility is associated with decline in QOL. The results highlight the importance of ensuring continuous possibilities for out-of-home mobility in maintaining QOL among older people.

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Acknowledgments

We thank all the study participants and interviewers for their contribution. We are grateful for Eeva-Maija Palonen, MSc, for her valuable work as coordinator of the LISPE project. The Gerontology Research Center (GEREC) is a joint effort between the Universities of Jyväskylä and Tampere, Finland.

Funding sources

This work was supported by the Academy of Finland (the Future of Living and Housing Program ASU-LIVE; Grant Number 255403 to [TR]), and Number 263729 to [AV]; Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture to [TR] and [EP]; Ribbingska Foundation in Lund, Sweden to [SI].

Author contributions

The authors are justifiably credited with authorship, according to the authorship criteria. MR conceptualized, designed, collected data, statistically analyzed and interpreted data, drafted the article; EP conceptualized, designed, collected data, critically revised the article; AV conceptualized, designed, collected data, critically revised the article; SI conceptualized, designed and critically revised the article; MK statistically analyzed and interpreted data; TR conceptualized, designed, collected data, critically revised the article, was Principal Investigator of the LISPE project. All the authors approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Merja Rantakokko.

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The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. The LISPE project was approved by the Ethical Committee of the University of Jyväskylä, Finland.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Rantakokko, M., Portegijs, E., Viljanen, A. et al. Changes in life-space mobility and quality of life among community-dwelling older people: a 2-year follow-up study. Qual Life Res 25, 1189–1197 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-015-1137-x

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