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AIM To evaluate the reliability and validity of the National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology functional assessment tool (NCGG-FAT) Chinese version among community-dwelling older Taiwanese. METHOD In total, 40 community-living older adults aged ≥65 years with intact global cognitive function (Mini-Mental State Examination ≥24) were enrolled and received a neuropsychological assessment twice using the computerized NCGG-FAT Chinese version, with an interval of 30 days to examine test-retest reliability. Conventional neurocognitive assessments were performed for all study participants within a week after the first administration of the NCGG-FAT Chinese version to determine validity. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) were employed to assess test-retest reliability, and the Pearson correlation coefficient evaluated the validity. RESULTS In total, 40 participants aged 69.8 ± 3.9 years with a mean education of 11.1 ± 4.2 years and MMSE of 28.5 ± 1.8 were enrolled. The Pearson correlation coefficient showed moderate-to-high validity between the conventional neurocognitive assessments and the NCGG-FAT Chinese version components (r = 0.509-0.606, P

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has casted a huge impact on global public health and the economy. In this challenging situation, older people are vulnerable to the infection and the secondary effects of the pandemic and need special attention. To evaluate the impacts of COVID-19 on older people, it is important to balance the successful pandemic control and active management of secondary consequences. These considerations are particularly salient in the Asian context, with its diversity among countries in terms of sociocultural heritage, healthcare setup and availability of resources. Thus, the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia summarized the considerations of Asian countries focusing on responses and difficulties in each country, impacts of health inequity related to the COVID-19 pandemic and proposed recommendations for older people, which are germane to the Asian context. More innovative services should be developed to address the increasing demands for new approaches to deliver healthcare in these difficult times and to establish resilient healthcare systems for older people. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2020; 9999: n/a-n/a.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic has casted a huge impact on global public health and economy. In this challenging situation, older people are vulnerable to the infection and the secondary effects of the pandemic and need special attentions. To evaluate the impacts of COVID‐19 on older people, it is important to balance the successful pandemic control and active management of secondary consequences. These considerations are especially salient in the Asian context, with its diversity among countries in terms of sociocultural heritage, healthcare setup and availability of resources. Thus, the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia summarized the considerations of Asian countries focusing on responses and difficulties in each country, impacts of health inequity related to COVID‐19 pandemic and proposed recommendations for older people which are germane to the Asian context. More innovative services should be developed to address the increasing demands for new approaches to deliver health care in the difficult times and to establish resilient health care systems for older people. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Aim Dementia and cognitive impairment are important public health challenges to a rapidly aging country. The present study aimed to explore the protective factors against cognitive decline among community-dwelling middle-aged and older people from health, social, and lifestyle perspectives. Methods Data of the Social Environment and Biomarkers of Aging Study, a population-based cohort study in Taiwan, were retrieved for the study. Overall, 676 participants with intact baseline cognitive function (measured by the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire) were enrolled and followed for six years. Any increasing score of the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire in the observational period was referred to as cognitive function decline. Associated factors for cognitive decline were identified by the logistic regression model. Results Among all participants, 205 (30%) experienced cognitive decline during the study period. Crude logistic regression showed that women (odds ratio [OR] 1.9, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.3–2.6), low educational level (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.4–3.0) and low mastery (OR 1.4, 95% CI 1.0–1.9) were associated with cognitive decline, but no daily consumption of vegetables and fruits had only a marginal association (OR 1.3, 95% CI 0.9–1.8). In the fully adjusted logistic regression analysis, old age, women, low educational level and low sense of mastery were independent predictors for cognitive decline. Participants with two modifiable factors (mastery, and daily consumptions of vegetables and fruits) had a lower risk of cognitive decline (OR 0.5, 95% CI 0.3–0.9), compared with those without any protective factor. Conclusions Participants with a better educational level, better personal mastery, and more consumption of fruits and vegetables were less likely to experience cognitive decline. An intervention study combining these features should be carried out to promote better cognitive health in communities. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017: 17 (Suppl. 1): 20–27.

Aim There is a complex interrelationship between long sleep duration, frailty, chronic inflammation and mortality among the community-dwelling middle-aged and elderly population, which remains unclear and deserves to be investigated. The current study intended to explore these associations by using a prospective population-based cohort study. Methods A total of 937 community-dwelling middle-aged and elderly people were enrolled. Sleep patterns of the study participants were categorized as short (

Aim To evaluate the survival benefits of different models of post-acute care (PAC) services for older patients with hip fractures in Taiwan Methods This was a prospective cohort study that recruited elderly patients with hip fractures receiving surgical treatment from 2007 to 2009 for study. All patients were provided home-based PAC, institution-based PAC or conventional home care (CHC) based on their capacity of family care resources. Functional status and survival status was followed for 4 years. Results Overall, 453 hip fracture patients (mean age 81.9 ± 6.8 years, 58.8% men) were recruited for the present study. Among them, 29.4% (133/453) patients received home-based PAC, 25.6% (116/453) patients received institution-based PAC and 45.0% (204/453) received CHC. During follow up, 28.9% (131/453) died within the mean of 940.3 ± 453.40 days. Adjusted for age, sex, living status, visual acuity, mood status, previous fall history, and prefracture activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), ADL fully recovered patients were significantly more likely to survive in the 4-year follow up (HR 2.791, P = 0.01, 95% CI 1.261–6.149). Patients receiving either home- or institution-based PAC had better survival than the CHC group after adjustment for age, sex, living status, visual acuity, mood status, previous fall history, prefracture ADL and IADL (HR 0.486, P = 0.008, 95% CI 0.284–0.832 for home-based PAC; HR 0.546, P = 0.036, 95% CI 0.311–0.960 for institution-based PAC). Conclusions PAC services were of great survival benefit for elderly hip fracture patients, and the home-based model was more likely to achieve complete functional recovery, which was important for long-term survival. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2016; 16: 28–36.

Aim Sarcopenia is a well-recognized geriatric syndrome, which is associated with a variety of adverse outcomes. The present study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of sarcopenia and its associative clinical characteristics in Taiwan. Methods Data of the I-Lan Longitudinal Aging Study (ILAS) were retrieved for this study. Sarcopenia was defined according to the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People criteria, and comparisons of demographic characteristics, physical performance, body composition, cardiometabolic profiles and functionality indicators were carried out. Results Overall, data of 1008 participants (mean age 65.2 ± 9.3 years, male 50.6%) were retrieved for analysis. The cut-off value of relative appendicular skeletal muscle was 7.0 kg/m2 for men and 5.9 kg/m2 for women. Sarcopenia was significantly related to low body mass index, smaller waist circumference, poor nutrition and poor cognition. The mean carotid intima-media thickness and cardiometabolic parameters showed no statistically significant findings. Conclusions The present paper showed the epidemiology of sarcopenia, and the strong connection to functionality indicators. However, sarcopenia was not associated with cardiometabolic risk or carotid intima media thickness in the present study. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2014; 14 (Suppl. 1): 36–45.

Aim Although patients admitted to post-acute care (PAC) units are usually clinically stable, unexpected medical conditions requiring acute ward readmissions still occur and can jeopardize the clinical effectiveness of PAC services. The main purpose of the present study was to evaluate predictive factors for clinical instability of patients in PAC units to improve the quality of PAC services. Methods This was a nationwide multicenter cohort study that recruited patients from five PAC units in Taiwan between July 2007 and June 2009. All patients received the comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) within 72 h of PAC unit admissions. Conditions requiring acute ward re-admissions from PAC units were defined as clinical instability. Causes of clinical instability for all patients and data of CGA were collected for analysis. Results Of 918 enrolled participants, 119 (12.9%) experienced acute ward readmissions, including 106 (89.1%) admissions related to medical conditions and 13 (10.9%) for surgical causes. Common conditions included diseases of the respiratory system (n = 32, 26.9%), genitourinary system (n = 24, 20.2%) and digestive system (n = 14, 11.8%). Surgical conditions, mainly fractures and dislocation of upper limbs, were significantly more likely to occur later (P = 0.05) in the PAC unit admissions than medical conditions. Compared with the non-readmission group, the readmission group was leaner (mean body mass index 21.1 ± 2.8 vs 22.0 ± 3.8 kg/m2, P = 0.007), having poorer functional status (mean Barthel Index 41.0 ± 19.4 vs 45.4 ± 20.3, P = 0.02; mean IADL: 1.3 ± 1.6 vs 1.7 ± 1.8, P = 0.016), poorer cognitive function (mean Mini-Mental State Examination: 16.8 ± 6.4 vs 18.3 ± 6.4, P = 0.022), poorer ambulation (mean Timed Up & Go test 32.7 ± 18.7 vs 26.6 ± 11.7 s, P = 0.039) and poorer nutritional status (mean Mini-Nutrition Assessment 13.3 ± 5.7 vs 15.4 ± 5.8, P

Aim Skeletal muscle loss is a common feature of aging, and is associated with unfavorable outcomes. Although several indexes of skeletal muscle mass measurement have been developed, the most optimal index for sarcopenia diagnosis among Asian populations has remained unclear. The present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between skeletal muscle mass and physical performance among community-dwelling people in Taiwan. Methods Data of the I-Lan Longitudinal Aging Study (ILAS) were retrieved for study. Comparisons between demographic profiles, physical performance and skeletal muscle mass (measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry) were carried out. Skeletal muscle mass expressed by lean body mass divided by squared height (LBM/ht2), appendicular muscle mass divided by squared height (ASM/ht2) and percent skeletal muscle index (SMI%) were compared between measurements of physical performance. Results Overall, the data of 532 participants (mean age 64.6 ± 9.5 years, male 53.0%) were retrieved for analysis. Age was associated with poorer physical performance, and decreased ASM/ht2 and LBM/ht2, but not SMI%. Skeletal muscle mass (SMI%) was less significantly related to slow walking speed than ASM/ht2 in men. In women, all three muscle indexes showed no significant association between slow walking speed. In contrast, low handgrip strength was strongly associated with decreased skeletal muscle mass (measured by ASM/ht2 and LBM/ht2, but not SMI%) in both men and women. Conclusions Skeletal muscle mass was significantly associated with handgrip strength along with aging, but the association of skeletal muscle mass and walking speed was less significant. In sarcopenia diagnosis among Asian populations, ASM/ht2 should be the most suitable index for skeletal muscle mass measurements, and physical performance should be measured universally beyond measurements of skeletal muscle mass. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2013; 13: 964–971.