Abstract
This study examined whether the association of quality of life (QoL) with perceived neighbourhood problems is stronger in older adults with osteoarthritis (OA) than in those without OA. Of all 294 participants, 23.8% had OA. More perceived neighbourhood problems were associated with a stronger decrease in QoL over time in participants with OA (B=−0.018; p=0.02) than in those without OA (B=−0.004; p=0.39). Physical activity did not mediate this relationship. Older adults with OA may be less able to deal with more challenging environments.
Highlights
The importance of the neighbourhood environment for quality of life (QoL) has been recognized (Iwarsson et al, 2007; Lawton, 1986; Lawton and Nahemow, 1973; Rantakokko et al, 2010), but the association between specific features of the neighbourhood environment and QoL in older community-dwelling adults has not been studied extensively
This study examined the association of QoL with perceived neighbourhood problems in older adults with and without OA, and assessed whether this relationship was stronger in those with OA
The results showed that the cross-sectional association of QoL with perceived neighbourhood problems did not differ between older adults with and without OA
Summary
The importance of the neighbourhood environment for quality of life (QoL) has been recognized (Iwarsson et al, 2007; Lawton, 1986; Lawton and Nahemow, 1973; Rantakokko et al, 2010), but the association between specific features of the neighbourhood environment and QoL in older community-dwelling adults has not been studied extensively. Little is known about the association between specific neighbourhood problems and QoL in older community-dwelling persons (Rantakokko et al, 2010). A study by Puts et al showed that older frail and non-frail community-dwelling persons report that perceived neighbourhood problems, such as noise and crime, lead to a lower QoL. A study by Levasseur et al showed that fewer barriers in the physical outdoor environment predicted good QoL in older adults with physical disabilities (Levasseur et al, 2008). Rantakokko et al showed that perceived barriers in the outdoor environment, such as traffic and poor street conditions, reduce QoL in older community-dwelling
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