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Aim There has been increasing interest in the effect of social capital (SC) on health over the last decade both in Japan and internationally. This study elucidated whether components of SC are linked to the psychogeriatric health of older Japanese individuals. Method Data for 169 eligible older people living in three rural areas were collected. Multilevel analyses were performed to examine associations between general trust, informal social interaction and formal group participation with self-rated health, mini-mental state examination (MMSE), self-rated depression scale (SDS) and general self-efficacy scale (GSES). Results Our study revealed that MMSE, SDS and GSES were significantly associated with informal social interaction and formal group participation after adjusting for area-level SC. However, we observed no relationship between general trust and health outcomes. Conclusion The findings suggest that the strategic enhancement of social cohesion and social networks for older people may promote their health and quality of later life.

Objective The aim was to determine whether mini mental state examination (MMSE) scores improved in older participants of a Functioning Improvement Tool (FIT) home-visit program. Methods Two hundred fifty-two participants aged 65 years or older living at home and receiving preventive services or a community long-term care prevention project according to the Japanese social long-term care insurance system were enrolled and randomly assigned to an intervention group (n = 128) or a control group (n = 124). Intervention group subjects received a 60-min FIT home-visit program for 3 months, which included guidance, assistance, and help in writing and teaching calculation in order to complete the FIT. Control subjects did not receive any home visits. Cognitive function was evaluated by MMSE. Analysis of covariance was used to examine the effects of the FIT adjusting for baseline MMSE scores, age, and sex. Results Fifty-three subjects were excluded because of withdrawal, hospitalization, death, relocation, or missing data of MMSE; 199 subjects (60 men, 139 women; age 78.6 ± 7.4 years) were analyzed. The baseline MMSE scores did not differ between the intervention and control groups (24.2 ± 4.3 vs. 24.1 ± 4.7, p = 0.90). After the study period, the change in the MMSE score was significantly better in the intervention group than in the control group (0.8 ± 0.3 vs. −0.1 ± 0.2, p = 0.04). Stratified analyses showed that the intervention strategy was most effective in subjects with mild cognitive decline, with baseline MMSE scores from 18 to 23 points (1.9 ± 0.5 vs. −0.1 ± 2.8, p = 0.04). Conclusions Our FIT home-visit program improved MMSE scores in older participants with mild cognitive decline. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Aim: This study aimed to determine the effect of a home visit program using a Functioning Improvement Tool (FIT) compared with a home visit using conversation alone. Methods: Twenty-eight participants (mean age, 78.6 ± 7.5 years) were randomly assigned to an intervention (n = 13) or control (n = 15) group for 3 months. The intervention group received a 60-minute FIT home visit program; the control group received a 30-minute home visit using common conversational techniques. Measures were Mini-Mental State Examination, Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) and Geriatric Depression Scale. Results: The FAB score was significantly improved in the intervention group compared with the control group (2.5 vs −0.5, P = 0.02). Conclusions: Our FIT home visit program improved cognitive function. Further studies with larger samples and longer follow-up periods are needed to assess the long-term effectiveness of a FIT home visit program on cognition.