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Objectives: The objectives were to study changes in morale in individuals 85 years and older, and to assess the effect of negative life events on morale over a five-year follow-up period., Method: The present study is based on longitudinal data from the Umeå85+/GERDA-study, including individuals 85 years and older at baseline (n = 204). Morale was measured with the Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale (PGCMS). Negative life events were assessed using an index including 13 negative life events occurring during the follow-up period. Linear regression was used for the multivariate analyses., Results: The majority of the sample (69.1%) had no significant changes in morale during the five-year follow-up. However, the accumulation of negative life events was significantly associated with a greater decrease in PGCMS. A higher baseline PGCMS score did not attenuate the adverse effect negative life events had on morale., Conclusion: Morale seemed to be mainly stable in a five-year follow-up of very old people. It seems, nonetheless, that individuals are affected by negative life events, regardless of level of morale. Preventing negative life events and supporting individuals who experience multiple negative life events could have important implications for the care of very old people.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate whether higher morale, i.e. future-oriented optimism, at baseline was associated with lower risk of depressive disorders five years later among very old people.Methods The Umeå85+/GErontological Regional Database, a population-based study with a longitudinal design, recruited participants in Sweden and Finland aged 85, 90 and ≥95 years. The sample in the present study included 647 individuals (89.1±4.4 years (Mean±SD), range 85-103). After five years, 216 were alive and agreed to a follow-up (92.6±3.4 years, range 90-104). The Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale (PGCMS) was used to assess morale. The depressive disorder diagnosis was determined according to DSM-IV based on medical records and interview data including assessment scales for depressive disorders. A number of sociodemographic, functional and health-related variables were analysed as possible confounders.Results For those with no depressive disorders at baseline, the only baseline variable significantly associated with depressive disorders five years later was the PGCMS score. A logistic regression model showed lower risk of depressive disorders five years later with higher baseline PGCMS scores (odds ratio 0.779 for one point increase in PGCMS, p<0.001). The association remained after adjusting for social isolation (p<0.1 association with depressive disorders five years later).Conclusion Our results indicate that the higher the morale, the lower the risk of depressive disorders five years later among very old people. The PGCMS seems to identify those very old individuals at increased risk of depressive disorders five years later. Preventive measures could befocused on this group., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: high morale is defined as future-oriented optimism. Previous research suggests that a high morale independently predicts increased survival among old people, though very old people have not been specifically studied., Objective: to investigate whether high morale is associated with increased survival among very old people., Subjects: the Umeå 85+/GErontological Regional DAtabase-study (GERDA) recruited participants aged 85 years and older in northern Sweden and western Finland during 2000-02 and 2005-07, of whom 646 were included in this study., Methods: demographic, functional- and health-related data were collected in this population-based study through structured interviews and assessments carried out during home visits and from reviews of medical records. The 17-item Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale (PGCMS) was used to assess morale., Results: the 5-year survival rate was 31.9% for participants with low morale, 39.4% for moderate and 55.6% for those with high morale. In an unadjusted Cox model, the relative risk (RR) of mortality was higher among participants with low morale (RR = 1.86, P < 0.001) and moderate morale (RR = 1.59, P < 0.001) compared with participants with high morale. Similar results were found after adjustment for age and gender. In a Cox model adjusted for several demographic, health- and function-related confounders, including age and gender, mortality was higher among participants with low morale (RR = 1.36, P = 0.032) than those with high morale. There was a similar but non-significant pattern towards increased mortality in participants with moderate morale (RR = 1.21, P value = 0.136)., Conclusion: high morale is independently associated with increased survival among very old people., (© The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Geriatrics Society. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Stroke incidence increases with age and may impact on morale. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of stroke among individuals aged 85 years or older in Northern Sweden and Western Finland and to evaluate factors associated with morale among those who have had a stroke compared with those without a stroke history. This population-based, cross-sectional study included 708 individuals (504 women and 204 men) aged 85 years and older (range 85-107). The study was conducted through structured interviews during home visits and from reviews of medical records, where demographic data and health-related factors were collected. The 17-item Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale (PGCMS) was used to assess morale. Stroke-prevalence was 22% (156 of 708) in the study population. Ninety-one of 465 participants who could answer PGCMS questions had had a stroke. Those with stroke had significantly lower PGCMS scores than those without (10.9±3.8 SD vs. 12.1±3.0 SD, p-value 0.008), but 38.5% had high morale. A multiple linear regression analysis showed that low morale was independently associated with depression, angina pectoris and impaired hearing among those with stroke and another multiple linear regression, among those without a stroke history, showed that low morale was independently associated with depression, pain and poor nutritional status. A large proportion of very old have had stroke which is associated with reduced morale. Low morale among those with stroke was independently associated with depression, angina pectoris and impaired hearing which could be the focus for future intervention studies., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)