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IntroductionHigh energy expenditure by healthy older individuals has numerous benefits, and housework and exercises done at home are among the most common physical activities. However, there is lit...

Background: Absolute grip strength (aGS) is used to detect dynapenia, and is also an indicator of functional impairments such as mobility limitations. The objective of this study is to investigate whether dynapenia status assessed by absolute grip strength (aGS) is associated with loss of community mobility. Method: The population studied (n=62) was composed of a dynapenic group of women (aged 66.4 ± 4.8) according to an aGS threshold of ≤ 19.9kg and an age-matched group of nodynapenic women (aged 66.1 ± 5.2). The aGS was measured and body-weigth-related to grip strength (BW/GS) was computed. Fonctionnal laboratory tests were conducted. During 12 days, each participant wore a GPS device to obtain Transit distance in vehicle per day, Transit distance on foot per day and Ellipse area. The Life space (LS) was assessed using the Life Space Assesment questionnaire (LSA). A Wilcoxon test was used to compare the 2 groups for the community mobility measures. Then, data of the 2 groups were pooled to assess the relationship between BW/GS and community mobility measures. A Spearman correlation was used. Results: The dynapenic group performed worse for fonctionnal capacity tests such as the step test and the walking speed. Howerver, no significant difference was found for GPS measures and LS between the two groups. No significant relationship was found for the BW/GS and community mobility measures with the GPS measures and the LS.

This article introduces a cartography tool to help social workers work with and support family caregivers. This tool aims to determine (1) which caregivers are likely to need additional support during bereavement and (2) what resources the caregiver has that care teams can rely on for decision-making and planning. The purpose of this article is to present a preliminary assessment of the cartography based on the feedback collected from potential users regarding the tool's content and usage.

In the world literature, the study of 19 patients reported in 1934 by WJ. Mixter et JS. Barr is credited with being the first report of surgical excision to treat lumbar disc herniation. In 1909, several reports of surgery to remove tumours causing compression of the lumbar nerve roots were published. However, no links were established between the intervertebral disks and these tumours, which were classified as enchondromas. In 1930, the neurologist T. Alajouanine and the surgeon D. Petit-Dutaillis built on work by the German pathologist CG Schmorl and on their personal experience with two surgically treated patients to write detailed descriptions of disc herniations and their underlying mechanisms. Although they were the first to gain a clear understanding of lumbar disc herniation, their work remained unrecognised, probably due to both language barriers and their failure to report on a larger number of patients.

Introduction: Understanding determinants of community mobility disability is critical for developing interventions aimed at preventing or delaying disability in older adults. In an effort to understand these determinants, capturing and measuring community mobility has become a key factor. The objectives of this paper are to present and illustrate the signal processing workflow and outcomes that can be extracted from an activity and community mobility measurement approach based on GPS and accelerometer sensor data and 2) to explore the construct validity of the proposed measurement approach using data collected from healthy older adults in free-living conditions. Methods: Personal, functional impairment and environmental variables were obtained by self-report questionnaires in 75 healthy community-living older adults (mean age = 66 ± 7 years old) living on the island of Montreal, QC, Canada. Participants wore, for 14 days during waking hours on the hip, a data logger incorporating a GPS receiver with a 3-axis accelerometer. Time at home ratio (THR), Trips out (TO), Destinations (D), Maximal distance of destinations (MDD), Active time ratio (ATR), Steps (S), Distance in a vehicle (DV), Time in a vehicle (TV), Distance on foot (DF), Time on foot (TF), Ellipse area (EA), and Ellipse maximum distance (EMD) were extracted from the recordings. Results: After applying quality control criteria, the original data set was reduced from 75 to 54 participants (28% attrition). Results from the remaining sample show that under free-living conditions in healthy older adults, location, activity and community mobility outcomes vary across individuals and certain personal variables (age, income, living situation, professional status, vehicle access) have potential mitigating effects on these outcomes. There was a significant (yet small) relationship (rho < 0.40) between self-reported life space and MDD, DV, EA, and EMD. Conclusion: Wearability and usability of the devices used to capture free-living community mobility impact participant compliance and the quality of the data. The construct validity of the proposed approach appears promising but requires further studies directed at populations with mobility impairments.

Study design A multicentric retrospective study on primary adult scoliosis patients operated on between 2002 and 2007. A 3-step statistical analysis was performed to describe the incidence of complications, the risk factors, and the reoperation risk with survival curves for the entire cohort. Objective To describe complication rate and risk factors as well as survival curves associated with adult primary scoliosis surgery in patients aged 50 years or older. Summary of background data Adult deformity surgery is classically associated with a high rate of complications. The identification of risk factors for developing such complications is consequently of major interest as well as survival curves that can provide useful information on reoperation risks. Although many reports exist in the literature, the cohorts analyzed are often heterogeneous and the actual prevalence of complications varies widely. This study represents to our knowledge the largest series on adult patients aged 50 years or older operated for the first time for lumbar or thoracolumbar scoliosis and excluding every other possible diagnosis. Methods A retrospective review of prospectively collected data from 6 centers in France. A total of 306 primary lumbar adult or degenerative scoliosis patients older than 50 years undergoing surgery between 2002 and 2007 were included. Demographics, comorbidities, x-ray parameters, surgical data, and complications were analyzed. Statistical analysis was performed to obtain correlations and risk factors for developing complications. Reoperation risk was calculated with Kaplan-Meier survival curves. Results A total of 306 patients aged 63 years (range, 50-83), with 83% women. Mean follow-up was 54 months. Mean Cumulative Illness Rating Scale score was 5 (range, 0-26). Main curve was 50° (range, 4-96) with apex between T12 and L2. Ten percent of patients had anterior surgery only, 18% had double anteroposterior approach, and 72% had posterior surgery only. Seventy-four percent (226 patients) had long fusions of 3 or more levels and 44% (134 patients) were fused to the sacrum. Forty percent (122 patients) had a decompression performed and 18% had an osteotomy. There were 175 complications for 119 patients (39%). No cases of death or blindness were reported. General complication rate was 13.7%, early infection occurred in 4% (12 patients), and late infection occurred in 1.2%. Neurological complications were present in 7% with 2 cases (0.6%) of late cord-level deficits and 12 reoperations (4%). Prevalence of mechanical complications was 24% (73 patients), with 58 patients (19%) needing a reoperation. Risk factors for mechanical or neurological complications were number of instrumented vertebra (P ≤ 0.01) fusion to the sacrum (P ≤ 0.001), pedicle subtraction osteotomy (PSO) (P = 0.01), and a high preoperative pelvic tilt of 26° or more (P ≤ 0.05). Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed reoperation risk of 44% at 70 months. Long fusion risk was 40% at 50 months and fusions to the sacrum reoperation risk was 48% at 49 months. Conclusion Overall complication rate was 39%, and 26% of the patients were reoperated for mechanical or neurological complications. Risk factors include number of instrumented vertebra, fusion to the sacrum, PSO, and preoperative pelvic tilt of 26° or more. There is a 44% risk of a new operation in the 6-year-period after the primary procedure.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY The incidence of complications secondary to surgical treatment of spinal deformations remains imprecise. The purpose of this prospective multicentric observational study was to assess the incidence of intra- and postoperative complications secondary to this type of surgery to detail the observed complications and to identify favoring factors. MATERIAL AND METHODS For this study, we included 3311 patients who underwent surgery during a 12-month period for spinal deformation, defined as idiopathic or secondary scoliosis or kyphosis, irrespective of the localization, severity, or type of surgery performed. Four main categories of complications were studied: general, infectious, neurological, and mechanical. Pre- and intraoperative variables recorded were: epidemiological and morphological data, history of surgery for the same spinal deformation, comorbid conditions, type of deformation treated (nature, anatomic localization, severity, reducibility), type of surgery performed (approach, duration of the operation), operative blood loss, extent and localization of the fusion, associated neurological release, vertebral osteotomy or not, type of graft used. Two types of analysis were performed. The first was a descriptive analysis to detail the overall incidence of complications and the incidence of each of the four main categories. The second was a multivariate analysis designed to determine factors significantly associated with complication occurrence. RESULTS Mean age of the cohort was 27 +/- 18 years; 6.8% of the patients had had a prior operation for the spinal deformation. The deformation was scoliosis in 90% (mean angle 56 +/- 20 degrees) and kyphosis in 10% (mean angle 47 +/- 23 degrees). An isolated posterior approach was used for 72.5% of patients, an isolated anterior approach for 6.4%, and a combined anteroposterior approach for 21.1%. Seven hundred four patients (21.3%) had one or more complications (850 complications) during or shortly after their operation. The incidences of general, infectious, mechanical and neurological complications were: 5.7%, 4.7%, 11.5%, and 1.8% respectively. Globally, considering all types of complications, the following factors were found to be significantly associated with complication occurrence: patient age, ASA score, extent of the fusion, presence of vertebral osteotomy, inclusion of the sacrum in the arthrodesis, and initial angle of the treated deformation. For patients with scoliosis, the following factors were significantly associated with a secondary central neurological disorder: initial angle of the deformation, use of vertebral osteotomy, type of curvature with greater risk for thoracic curvatures and double thoracic and lumbar curvatures. CONCLUSION This work enabled us to determine the overall rate of complications after surgical treatment of spinal deformations. Certain risk factors related with complication occurrence were identified, but the heterogeneous nature of the population and the methodology used to identify these factors only allowed detection of trends. A future study by etiological group or focusing on specific complications should allow a more precise analysis of these risk factors. This overall rate of complications should be used to better inform patients and their family about the risks of this type of surgery.

With the advent of miniaturized body worn sensing technology it is now possible to collect and store data on different aspects of mobility under free-living conditions for long period of time. 88 older adults living in the community in Montreal (Canada) wore for 12 days a data logging platform incorporating a GPS receiver with an 3D accelerometer. location, activity, travel and Geospatial distribution of mobility were extracted and compared across participants using ICF measures body structures and function (cognitive status, depressive symptoms, body composition, pain), personal (age, gender, education, revenue) and environmental (social participation, living situation, walking access to shop and services, access to a car). Results suggest that the proposed mobility outcomes are sensitive to the different domain of the ICF with environmental variables contributing significantly to variation in mobility of community dwelling older adults. On-going studies are looking at how aging and disease affect these mobility outcomes.