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Gerontechnology is an interdisciplinary field of research and application involving gerontology, the scientific study of aging, and technology, the development and distribution of technologically based products, environments, and services. One goal of gerontechnology is to use technology to prevent, delay, or compensate for the perceptual, cognitive, and physical declines of aging. A second is to use technology to support or enhance the opportunities associated with aging related to communication, leisure, learning, service, and artistic expression. Areas of application include housing, personal mobility and transportation, communication, health, work, and recreation and self-fulfillment. The methods used to determine older persons needs and preferences for technology are discussed, as is the central role of the user in the development, dispersal, and evaluation of technology. A clinical evaluation of the value of assistive technology is summarized. The educational activities and professional organizations that support the development of gerontechnology are described, and the article concludes with a discussion of financing and advocacy of this new discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The April, 1998, issue of the Journal of Aging and Physical Activity (vol.6, no.2) is devoted entirely to reports of research from "The Evergreen Project," an ongoing multidisciplinary, longitudinal study of physical activity, health, and functioning in the population of elderly adults in Jyvaskyla, Finland. The issue contains an descriptive overview of the Project by Eino Heikkinen (Background, design, and methods of the Evergreen Project, pp. 106-120) and reports of five interdisciplinary studies of the levels of physical activity in the elderly and various outcomes related to it. In addition to the original, peer-reviewed reports, the issue contains abstracts of 13 studies from the Evergreen Project published in other journals and a bibliography of English language reports associated with the project. The present review concerns the five interdisciplinary studies presented in the special issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analyzes auditory reaction time (RT) data from community-dwelling volunteers with ages ranging from 17 to 96. Cross-sectional analyses; Longitudinal analyses.

Abstract: Objectives: We hypothesized that variability in voluntary movement paths of assisted living facility (ALF) residents would be greater in the week preceding a fall compared with residents who did not fall. Design: Prospective, observational study using telesurveillance technology. Setting: Two ALFs. Participants: The sample consisted of 69 older ALF residents (53 female) aged 76.9 (SD ± 11.9 years). Measurement: Daytime movement in ALF common use areas was automatically tracked using a commercially available ultra-wideband radio real-time location sensor network with a spatial resolution of approximately 20 cm. Movement path variability (tortuosity) was gauged using fractal dimension (fractal D). A logistic regression was performed predicting movement related falls from fractal D, presence of a fall in the prior year, psychoactive medication use, and movement path length. Fallers and non-fallers were also compared on activities of daily living requiring supervision or assistance, performance on standardized static and dynamic balance, and stride velocity assessments gathered at the start of a 1-year fall observation period. Fall risk due to cognitive deficit was assessed by the Mini Mental Status Examination (MMSE), and by clinical dementia diagnoses from participant’s activities of daily living health record. Results: Logistic regression analysis revealed odds of falling increased 2.548 (P = .021) for every 0.1 increase in fractal D, and having a fall in the prior year increased odds of falling by 7.36 (P = .006). There was a trend for longer movement paths to reduce the odds of falling (OR .976 P = .08) but it was not significant. Number of psychoactive medications did not contribute significantly to fall prediction in the model. Fallers had more variable stride-to-stride velocities and required more activities of daily living assistance. Conclusions: High fractal D levels can be detected using commercially available telesurveillance technologies and offers a new tool for health services administrators seeking to reduce falls at their facilities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Presents an obituary for Nancy Collier Waugh, seminal contributor of the development of the information-theory approach to cognition.

The authors reflect on the development of a smartwatch called Ubiwatch that was designed to enhance the Smart Home at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital in Tampa, Florida which uses advanced tracking technology to help patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Topics discussed include use of precise location-aware technologies to indoor navigation, the role of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to the development of wristwatch, and the advantages of the said smartwatch.

Examines the effects of strength training on glucose homeostasis in older individuals. Comparison on the response of older men with older women; Development of insulin resistance syndrome and other disease related to the deterioration in glucose metabolism; Measurement of plasma concentrations of glucose and insulin after training.

The authors discuss the development of a smart-home-based cognitive prosthetic that will deliver rehabilitation at the James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital Polytrauma Transitional Rehabilitation Program (PTRP) facility in Tampa, Florida. They cite the weaknesses identified by PTRP clinicians in the rehabilitation of traumatic brain injury patients addressed by the Smart Home. They describe the smart home architecture. Also noted are its interactive safety and rehabilitation applications.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the possible influences of age and gender on muscle volume responses to strength training (ST). DESIGN: Prospective intervention study. SETTING: University of Maryland Exercise Science and Wellness Research Laboratories. PARTICIPANTS: Eight young men (age 20–30 years), six young women (age 20–30 years), nine older men (age 65–75 years), and ten older women (age 65–75 years). INTERVENTION: A 6-month whole-body ST program that exercised all major muscle groups of the upper and lower body 3 days/week. MEASUREMENTS: Thigh and quadriceps muscle volumes and mid-thigh muscle cross-sectional area (CSA) were assessed by magnetic resonance imaging before and after the ST program. RESULTS: Thigh and quadriceps muscle volume increased significantly in all age and gender groups as a result of ST (P < .001), with no significant differences between the groups. Modest correlations were observed between both the change in quadriceps versus the change in total thigh muscle volume (r = 0.65; P < .001) and the change in thigh muscle volume versus the change in mid-thigh CSA (r = 0.76, P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that neither age nor gender affects muscle volume response to whole-body ST. Muscle volume, rather than muscle CSA, is recommended for studying muscle mass responses to ST. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the effects of age and gender on the relationship between knee strength and walking time during a walk-turn-walk test of a number of aged people. Link between increasing age and physical disability; Interaction between gender and age during both comfortable and fast gait times in the test; Factors that contribute to women's likelihood of frailty in later years.