Functional outcome for older adults with movement disabilities : A cross-sectional study

Abstract: Background:  Previous research have found that different factors have associations with the level of function. Only few studies investigate the population of older adults with movement disabilities.  Objective: The objective was to investigate how childhood socioeconomic status, education, gender, rural/urban living, and cohort affects functioning in late adulthood for people with movement disabilities. Six hypotheses were tested.  Method: The sample was selected from the Swedish Adoption/Twin Study of Aging, and consisted of n=69 older adults with self-reported movement disability, mean age 78 years. They have all participated in motor function testing, which is an objective measure of function. Mann-Whitney U test, Kruskal-Wallis H test and binary logistic regressions were performed.  Result: No significant difference were found between low/high childhood socioeconomic status, low/high education, men/women, rural/urban, and early/late cohort. Associations were found between age, urban living, later cohort and poorer functional level.  Conclusion: The results indicate that the older adults from Sweden aging with a movement disability might have equal opportunity to develop and maintain functional ability. The participants all have a movement disability and it is possible that the disability is the main factor determining the functional level.